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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 




AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY 

OF THE 

UNITED STATES. 



AN 

ELEMENTARY HISTORY 



OF THE 



United States, 



CHARLES MOERI8, 

AUTHOR OF " HALF-HOURS WITH AMERICAN HISTORY," " THE ARYAN RACE,' 
"civilization: a historical review OF ITS ELEMENTS," ETC. 



PENNSYLVANIA 


EDITION. 








JUN -71898 

^^^ of Ccvf^^ 


PHILADELPHIA : 


J. B. LIPPINCOTl 


: COMPANY. 


1898. 




^"c; cor, 
1898 ' 


TWO COPIES RECEIVED. 






8242 

Copyright, 1890, by J. B. Lippincott Comi'any. 



Copyright, 1898, by J. B. Lippincott Company. 



PREFACE. 



Histories of the United States of America have been 
many times written, and in many ways ; so often, indeed, 
that some might deem there was nothing more to say, or 
no new way of saying it. Yet new histories are of yearly 
appearance, and the world does not seem tired of welcom- 
ing them. These are usually written for the old ; but why 
not new histories for the young, who can certainly find no 
more profitable reading than the story of the origin and 
development of their own country ? 

No romance, in fact, can have more of interest and 
adventure, heroic eftbrts and noble deeds, than may be 
found in the history of the discovery and settlement of 
the American continent, and the birth and growth of the 
great republic of the United States. In the whole history 
of mankind there is little to surpass it in interest, and noth- 
ing in importance. To the youthful American, indeed, it^ 
is indispensable, and whatever else he may learn, a full and 
accurate acquaintance with the story of his own land should 
stand first in his course of study, as an absolutely requisite 
preliminary to the making of an American citizen. 

This story is too near us to appeal to our minds with that 
glamour of romance which often clings to the annals of 

5 



Q PREFACE. 

more remote periods. To many it seems devoid of the 
interest of the era of chivalry, the charm of knightly deeds 
and strange adventure, and takes form in their minds in- 
stead as a detail of prosy incidents and matter-of-fact events. 
Yet such a conception does great injustice to the true char- 
acter of American history, and to the numerous instances 
of knightly valor and chivalrous honor which give all the 
interest of romance to its pages. The deeds of our pioneers 
have never been surpassed in daring and the spirit of adven- 
ture, the progress of discovery and settlement in this country 
is a story replete with attractiveness, while there is nothing 
more marvellous in fiction than the extraordinary progress 
of civilization in the region of the United States during the 
few centuries since settlement was first made upon its shores. 
History, however, in the modern sense of the word, 
covers a broader space than the tale of war and adventure, 
daring migration and political progress. There is the story 
of the people as well as of their leaders to tell, the home 
life of the masses, the record of manners and customs, 
invention, and peaceful development in the arts and sciences. 
Thus we are not alone concerned with war and the rumors 
of war, but also \\dth peace and the triumphs of peace ; not 
alone with political development, the formation of govern- 
ments, the struggles of patriotism, and the growth of repub- 
licanism, but also with the details of every-day life, the 
description of those powerfiil influences which have made not 
only America but the Americans, and to which the citizens 
of our country owe that spirit of liberty and restless energy 



PREFACE. -7 

which have made them the envy of the oppressed masses 
of Europe, and their country the modern " wonder of the 
world." This inner story of the American people we have 
endeavored to set forth in a series of chapters descriptive of 
city and country life at various periods of our colonial and 
national history, each a picture of the people of America as 
they appeared at the various periods indicated. The progress 
of invention, striking developments of mechanical ability, 
religious conditions, and all that makes up the multiform 
life of a great people, have been described as fully as the 
space at command permitted, with the design of making at 
once a history of the American nation and of the American 
people, adapted in style and language to the use of the 
young. As such it is oflered to the school public of the 
United States, with the hope that it may prove a welcome 
addition to our historical literature. 

C. M. 



CONTENTS. 



PART I. 
EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES. 

SECTION PAGE 

I. — The Voyage of Columbus II 

II. — Later Voyages 18 

III.— The Indians 24 

IV. — French and English Settlements 30 

Questions for Examination 38 

PART II. 
THE ENGLISH COLONIES. 

I.— Virginia 39 

II. — The Pilgrims and the Puritans 45 

III. — Indian Wars of New England 53 

IV. — Manners and Customs of the Puritans 57 

v.— New York 62 

VI.— Life in New York 66 

VII.— Maryland 69 

VIII. — Pennsylvania 70 

IX. — Life in Pennsylvania 74 

X.— The Carolinas 78 

XL — Life in Virginia and Carolina 80 

XII.— Georgia 85 

XIIL— Condition of the Colonies 90 

Questions for Examination 93 

PART III. 
THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 

I. — The French in America 97 

II. — George Washington 101 

III.— The War in the North 107 

Questions for Examination 113 

9 



10 CONTENTS. 

PART IV. 
THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 

SECTION PAGE 

I.— The Tyranny of England 115 

II.— The Work of the Minute-Men 121 

III. — The War for Independence 131 

IV. — The People and the Country 139 

Questions for Examination 146 

PART V. 
THE FIRST HALF-CENTURY OF THE REPUBLIC, 

I. — The Making of the Government 149 

II. — The Second War with Great Britain 155 

III.— After the War 162 

IV.— The Progress of the Country 165 

Questions for Examination 173 

PART VI. 
TWENTY YEARS OF PROGRESS, 

I.— The Tariff Troubles and the Panic 176 

II,— The War with Mexico 179 

III.— The Work of the People 183 

Questions for Examination 192 

PART VII. 
THE ERA OF THE CIVIL WAR. 

I. — The Slavery Controversy 194 

II. — From Secession to Emancipation 198 

III.— The Final Years of the War 207 

Questions for Examination 214 

PART VIII. 
THE ERA OF PEACE AND PROGRESS. 

I. — Events since the War 217 

II. — Recent Progress in America 236 

Questions for Examination 248 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY 

OF THE 

UNITED STATES. 



PART I. 

EXPLORATIONS AND DISCOVERIES. 
I.— THE VOYAGE OP COLUMBUS. 

Pour Hundred Years ago. — The world had grown old, 
very old, before America was discovered. Great empires had 
risen in Europe and Asia, and passed away ; many millions 
of men had lived and died; but not half the earth was 
known. Men did not even know its shape. Most persons 
thought that the earth was flat, and that the ocean every- 
where spread around the land. Sailors were afraid to go 
far out to sea, and most of them kept in sight of land, for 
no one knew what dangers might lie out on the open ocean, 
where man had never been. Many thought that a ship 
which sailed far out on the ocean would find itself gliding 
down a hill of waters, up which it could never climb again. 
Others believed that there was a region of fogs and mists, in 
which a ship, once lost, would never find its way out. Most 
of the learned men of the time refused to believe that a 
vessel could pass round the earth and return to its starting- 
point. 

The Mariner's Compass. — Before this time an important 

11 



12 -AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

discovery was made. A stone was found whicli had strange 
properties. It was what is now known as the loadstone, or 
natural magnet, and which has the power of attracting iron, 
and of pointing north and south. A steel needle rubbed on 
it acquires the same proj)erties. Hung up by its centre, 
one end of the ne.edle points towards the north. This 
was a discovery of the utmost importance to seamen. They 
can now, even though they are thousands of miles from 
land, tell by day or night in what direction they are sailing. 
Few things have been more useful to mankind than this 
little magnetic needle, known as the mamier's compass. 

Marco Polo. — At the time of which we are speaking — the 
latter part of the fifteenth century — there was the greatest 

desire to discover new coun- 
tries. Travellers had been to 
far-off lands, and had come 
back with strange stories, 
which filled others with the 
love of adventure and dis- 
covery. One traveller, a Vene- 
tian named Marco Polo, had 
^j^- been as far as China and 

"~^^ " Japan, and brought back ex- 

A SHIP OF THE NORTHMEN. . . ""pi • i 

citmg accounts oi the riches 
and wonders of those distant lands. The ships of the Portu- 
guese had sailed down the coast of Africa as far as the Cape 
of Good Hope. The bold sailors of Norway and Denmark 
had crossed the cold northern seas to Iceland and Green- 
land, and it is now thought that they had reached the shores 
of the American continent at a point they called Vineland. 
Christopher Columbus. — Among the many persons who 
wished to go on voyages of discovery was one whose name 
is known to us all, and will be as long as America exists. 




THE UNITED STATES. 



13 



He was born at Genoa, in Italy, about the year 1435, and 
was named Christopher Columbus. His father was a cloth 
weaver; but the people of Genoa were great sailors, and 
Columbus was sent to sea when he was but fourteen years 
old, and became a very skilful sailor. 

At that time India and China were known to be coun- 
tries of great wealth, but they could be reached only by 
long and costly journeys overland. Caravans crossed the 
deserts and the mountains of Asia to these far-oif lands, 
and brought back the silks of China and the jewels and 
spices of India at great expense and trouble. Was there 
no easier way to reach those rich regions? Columbus 
thought there was. He believed that the earth was round, 
that the ocean must extend from the shores of Europe to 
the shores of Asia, and that if he sailed 
to the west across this ocean he would 
be sure to reach those distant lands. 
He did not know how far it was round 
the earth, but he was sure that land 
lay beyond the ocean. 

It was not easy to make men believe 
this. For eighteen long years Colum- 
bus tried in vain to get the Kings of 
Spain and Portugal to aid him in his 
plan. He grew sick at heart with delay 
and disappointment. At last the Queen of Spain said that 
he should have the ships and men he asked for. If money 
could not be had she would lend her jewels to pay for them. 
And thus it was that Columbus got his ships. Three small 
vessels were given him, — we call them ships, but they were 
little larger than the sloops and yachts which we may see 
every day moving up and down our large rivers. Two of 
them, the Pinta and the Nina, had no decks except at the 




COLUMBUS. 



14 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

prow and stern. Only one of them had a complete deck, the 
Santa Maria, commanded by Columbus himself. This ves- 
sel was ninety feet long, and had a crew of sixty-six sailors. 

It seems strange to us that it took so many years to 
induce the rulers of a great kingdom to furnish such ships 
for a voyage across the ocean and the discovery of a new 
world. Many river merchants to-day could fit out a much 
better expedition at a few days' notice. Nothing could 
show more clearly how the world has grown in riches and 
enterprise during the last four hundred years. 

Columbus had almost as much trouble to get his sailors 
as his ships. Men were afraid to go with him. Many of 
those who sailed Avith him were forced to do so by order of 
the king, and went on board his ships full of fear. There 
were one hundred and twenty persons in all in the expedi- 
tion which set sail from the port of Palos, in Spain, on the 
3d of August, 1492, one of the days to be remembered in 
the history of the world. 

The Voyage of Discovery. — Let us stop here and think 
of the task before our bold mariner. He had set sail on 
the most important voyage that had ever been undertaken 
in the history of mankind. Day by day his ships left the 
known world farther behind them. Day by day new 
wonders and new terrors rose before them. They sailed 
far into that vast ocean upon which no soul had ever before 
ventured far from land. , Their fears increased as they went 
onward. The needle of the compass no longer pointed 
exactly north. The winds blew them steadily westward; 
but these same winds might hinder them from ever coming 
back. They were scared by the distance they had gone, 
though Columbus was wise enough not to let them know 
how far this was. 

The men demanded to be taken back ; they almost broke 



THE UNITED STATES. 



15 



into open mutiny, and some of them talked of throwing 
Cohimbus overboard and going back without him. Yet he 
was not to be turned from his purpose. He had set sail for 
India, and he was determined to go on. He was still sure 
that land lay beyond the seas, and that in time they would 
reach it. 

Approach to Land. — Two months of this wonderful voy- 
age passed away. Then the hearts of the sailors grew glad 
as their eyes beheld welcome signs. Land birds were seen 
flying about the ships. One of the men picked up out of 
the water a branch of a tree, on which there were fresh red 




THE LANDING OF COLUMBUS. 



berries. A piece of carved wood floated past them, and also 
some drifting sea-weed, with live crabs clinging to it. Hope 
now took the place of fear ; all eyes looked far ahead in 
search of land. 

At last it came. During the night before the 12th of 
October a distant light was seen shining across the waters. 



16 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

When morning came Columhiis, from the deck of his httle 
ship, gazed with joy and triumph on the green shores of the 
land he had so long hoped to see. There it lay before him, 
bright and beautiful, — a sunny island, covered with forest 
trees, — a scene of beauty on which the eyes of civilized man 
had never before gazed. 

The voyage was over; the victory was gained. The 
greatest discovery in human history had been made. Yet 
he who made it never knew how great his work had been. 
To the day of his death Columbus believed that it was the 
coast of India he had reached, and he gave the name of 
Indians to the strange, red-skinned natives who crowded out 
of the woods to gaze with wonder on his vessels. 

It was in this way that the natives of America came to 
be called Indians, after a country thousands of miles away. 
Little did Columbus dream of the great continent of America, 
with its plains and mountains, its lakes and forests, peopled 
then only by savages, but which was in time to become the 
seat of one of the greatest and noblest of nations. 

The Landing- of Columbus. — At the break of day, with 
waving banners and ringing music, Columbus was rowed 
to the shore. He was richly dressed in scarlet, and bore 
in his hand the great banner of Spain, with its rich hues 
of red and gold. The captains of the other vessels bore 
the banner designed by Columbus himself, in the centre 
of which was a green cross. On reaching the shore the 
admiral kneeled and kissed the ground; then rising, he 
drew his sword, and declared that the island which he 
had discovered belonged to the King and Queen of Spain. 
The natives looked on in wonder and admiration. Tlioy 
did not dream of the misery all this meant for them. 

The poor natives supposed that the white men had come 
from heaven. Columbus gave them glass beads, and in 



THE UNITED STATES. YJ 

return they gave what they had, — parrots and balls of cotton. 
They wore some ornaments made of gold, and Columbus 
asked them by signs where gold was to be found. They 
pointed to the south. The sailors returned to tlieir ships 
and sailed south among the beautiful islands of those seas 
until they reached the large island now known as Hayti. 
Columbus named it Hispaniola. From there they sailed 
back to Spain. 

The Reception in Spain. — The excitement in Spain was 
very great when Columbus and his companions returned 
with their remarkable story. Men heard with wonder of 
lands beyond the seas, inhabited by a race of red-skinned 
savages, and rich beyond their dreams. It was said that the 
sands of every river shone with grains of gold, that the 
meanest Indians wore ornaments of gold and jewels, and 
that the walls of the houses glittered with pearls. None 
of these stories were too wild for men to believe, and 
many grew eager to visit this New World of wealth and 
splendor. 

Columbus and his men entered the streets of Barcelona 
in a grand procession to meet the King and Queen of Spain, 
The red Indians, with their decorations of tropical feathers 
and golden ornaments, were looked upon with wonder. 
The bright-winged birds, the strange-shaped parrots, the 
rare plants and fruits, the unknown fabrics which were dis- 
played in the procession, all excited admiration. Columbus 
rode triumphantly onward, in rich attire, surrounded by a 
brilliant cavalcade of Spanish nobles, to receive the high 
honors bestowed upon him by the king and queen. Europe 
had never seen a procession like this, for never before had 
the wonders of a new world been shown to the eyes of the 
Old World, as Europe was afterwards called. 

Yet this was almost the last happy moment in the life of 

2 



/ 



18 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

the great discoverer. The remainder of his life was saddened 
by the injustice of men and the ingratitude of his sovereigns. 
He made three other voyages to America, and in the third 
voyage discovered the main-land of South America, near the 
mouth of the Orinoco River. From one of his voyages he 
was sent home in chains by his enemies. He had not even 
the honor of giving his name to the continent he had dis- 
covered. The name of America was taken from Amerigo 
Vespucci, whose account of the New World was the first to 
be printed. Columbus died in 1506, of a disease brought on 
by his hardships, troubles, and sufferings, a victim of the 
ingratitude of Spain. He gave orders that the chains which 
had been so shamefully fastened on his limbs should be 
buried in the grave with him. 

II.— LATER VOYAGES. 

The discovery of America by Columbus was the greatest 
event that had taken place for hundreds of years. If such 
a discovery should be made in our days, we may be sure that 
it would not be long before many vessels would be off to the 
new land. But in those days men were poor and news 
spread slowly. Ships were few and small, and kings and 
people had not much money. Most of what tliey had was 
spent in wars. Spain sent vessels from time to time to the 
rich islands which Columbus had discovered, but the other 
nations were very slow to send out ships. 

The Cabots. — England was the first to follow Spain. The 
town of Bristol, in England, was then a great shipping port. 
There lived in this town a merchant named John Cabot, 
who was born at Venice. This man wished to go on a voy- 
age of discovery, and got permission from the king, Henry 
Vn., to do so. He fitted up a ship, took with him his son, 



THE UNITED STATES. 19 

and sailed across the ocean until he reached the frozen coast 
of Labrador, This was in 1497. 

Cabot's papers and maps are lost, and all we know of his 
voyage is that he found the country cold and barren, and saw 
a great many white bears. It is said that after his return 
he was called " The Great Admiral," and went about dressed 
in rich clothing and followed by crowds of people. 

The next year his son, Sebastian Cabot, sailed to America. 
He also reached land at Labrador, but he kept on southward 
until he reached the coast of Virginia or Carolina. Like 
his father, he was received with honor on his return. Men 
called him " The Great Seaman," and Edward VI. gave him 
a pension. He lived to be very old, but the time and place 
of his death are unknown. Thus did England honor the 
men who discovered a continent. 

The Fishermen. — N^ot long after this the daring fishermen 
of Europe began to make voyages across the ocean. Their 
fishing vessels reached Newfoundland and went on as far 
as Nova Scotia. One of these men, named John Denys, 
sailed up the Gulf of St. Lawrence in 1506. But they were 
after fish, not honor, and did not trouble themselves to 
report discoveries. 

Verrazano. — France did not send an expedition to the 
New World till 1524. Then the thought came to Francis I., 
the king, that he had as much right as Spain to the wealth of 
these distant lands. So he had a ship made ready, and gave 
the command of it to an Italian seaman named Verrazano, 
who sailed away to the north as far as Nova Scotia. He 
entered the harbor of Newport, Rhode Island, where he found 
grape-vines growing, and began to trade with the Indians. 

But the red men were afraid of their visitors, and would not 
let them land. They let down their goods to the boats with 
ropes from the tops of steep rocks. We do not know what 



20 



AN ELEMENTARV HISTORY OF 



these goods were, but they would take nothing in exchange 
but knives, fish-hook,^, and tools for cutting. These savages 
seemed to know well what would be of use to them. 

Now we may know what gave Spain, England, and France 
the claim to these new lands. They sent ships across the 
ocean and took a look at them from the sea, and then said 
that all the land they had seen belonged to them. As foi- 
the Indians, no one thought that they had any claim to the 
country. They were looked on as little better than so many 
flies, that might be brushed aside by any one that was strong 
enough to do it. 

Cartier's Voyages. — Francis I. was busy in wars with his 
neighbors, and did not send out any more ships for ten 
years. Then two ships set sail under a captain named 
Jacques Cartier. These ships entered the Gulf of St. Law- 
rence, where Cartier landed and set up a cross, Avdth the 
king's coat of arms fastened to it. This was done to claim 
the country for the King of France. 

Cartier made two more voyages, 
and sailed up the great St. Lawrence 
River as far as where the city of 
Montreal now stands. He called 
the country Canada from the Indian 
word " Kannatha," which means vil- 
lage, but which he thought was the 
Indian name for the whole country. 
Ponce de Leon. — While the Eng- 
lish and French were making these 
discoveries the Spaniards were not 
They were sending ships from Spain and from the West 
Indies, and many discoveries and settlements were made. 
One adventurer, named Ponce de Leon, set out in 1512 on 
a romantic voyage. He had heard of a magical fountain 




POiN'CE DE LEON. 



idle. 



THE UNITED STATES. 



21 



which would bring back youth to every man who bathed in 
its waters. As he was growing old, he was eager to find 
this wonderful fountain, that he might bathe in it and be 
young again. In his search for it he found a new coun- 
try, which he called Florida. But he did not discover the 
fountain, and got death instead of life from his eflbrt. 

Balboa. — Another Spaniard, named Balboa, crossed the 
isthmus which connects North and South America, and 




AN AZTEC TEMPLE. 



looked with wonder on the waters of that great Pacific 
Ocean which no white man's eyes had ever seen before. He 
had made a long and dangerous journey over mountains and 
through fierce tribes of Indians, but he was paid for all his 
trouble when he saw, from the summit of a lofty hill, the 
waters of that great ocean, brightly shining in the rays of 
the sun. Never had man made a more glorious discovery, 
or human eyes gazed on a nobler sight. 

Three years after the death of Balboa, a Spanish fleet, 
under Fernando Magellan, sailed round South America, 



22 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

through the strait that bears his name, and came out on 
the waters of this great ocean. Magellan's ships were the 
first that ever sailed round the globe, and proved in this 
way that the earth is round. 

Before many years had passed the Spaniards did some 
bold and marvellous deeds on the American continent. One 
captain, named Cortez, with a few hundred men, conquered 
the great empire of Mexico ; and another, named Pizarro, 
did the same in the rich kingdom of Peru. They sent to 
Spain great quantities of gold and silver. But the Indians 
were treated by them with much cruelty, and millions of 
the red men died of hardship before the Spaniards had been 
many years in their land. 

Another Spaniard, named Narvaez, landed in Florida in 
1528, and went far to the north. He and his comrades 
were in search of gold ; but instead of rich cities, like those 
of Mexico, they found only swamps and forests and fighting 
Indians, and of three hundred only four came back alive. 
Hernando de Soto. — There is one more Spaniard about 
whom we must speak, for he was the 
first white man whose eyes fell upon 
the great Mississippi Eiver, and his 
adventures were very interesting. 
While the other nations of Europe 
were sending ships to look at the 
'coast of the New World, Hernando 
de Soto was wandering far through 
its interior and making important 
discoveries. 

DE SOTO. 

In 1539, De Soto landed in Florida 
with an army of about six hundred men, and with plenty 
of arms and provisions. He was a soldier who had been 
in Peru with Pizarro, and he wished to conquer Florida 




THE UNITED STATES. 23 

as Pizarro had conquered Peru. The whole country to the 
far west was then called Florida, and De Soto expected to 
find there great cities and much gold and silver, such as 
had been found in Peru and Mexico. He did not dream 
that he would find only tribes of poor savages, with no treas- 
ures of any value to him, and that he would never leave 
their country alive. 

De Soto's Expedition. — The overland march of the Span- 
iards was a long and tiresome one. The men soon wanted 
to go back, but De Soto would not listen to them. From 
time to time the Indians gave him pearls, or ornaments of 
gold, and this kept him fall of hope. He felt sure there 
must be rich nations ahead, and he kept marching on and 
on, seeking the gold which he never found. 

The Indians were angry at seeing these strangers in their 
country, and at the harm done them by some of the Span- 
iards, and many fierce battles took place. The Spaniards 
were always victorious, but numbers of them were killed, 
and they sufiered much from the want of food. 

De Soto led his army along the coast lands of the Gulf 
of Mexico, through tribe after tribe of Indians. These men 
in iron armor, with their prancing horses and shining arms, 
their banners and music and waving plumes, must have 
been a strange vision to the ignorant savages. But the 
natives soon found that those whom they at first took to be 
gods were only men, and very cruel men, and they fought 
them at every step. 

The Mississippi. — Yet De Soto kept on. In time he 
reached a point near where the city of Memphis now stands. 
Here, to his delight, he saw before him a mighty river, the 
great stream now known as the Mississippi. It was with 
proud eyes that the Spaniards gazed on this noble stream, 
which they were the first white men to behold. 



24 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

They soon had to cross this river to escape the Indians, 
and they roamed for many miles through the country on the 
other side. The Indians here \\^shed to be friendly, but the 
Spaniards treated them badly, and they became angry and 
tried to kill the whites. 

For three years De Soto and his men had been in the 
wilds of America, and had found nothing but hard marching, 
fighting, and the pangs of hunger. At length they decided 
to return to tlieir own country. But the bold leader did not 
live to see his native land again. Worn out -with his toil, 
he died on the banks of the great river he had discovered, 
and was buried in its waters to save his body from the fury 
of the Indians. He was sunk in the waves at dead of night, 
and his followers began to build themselves boats, for they 
did not dare to try to return by land. 

When their boats were ready they launched them on the 
stream, and for seventeen days they floated down its waters. 
For fifty days more they sailed about in the Gulf of Mexico, 
until they reached a small Spanish settlement, from which 
they were sent to the island of Cuba. 

They had gone out strong in number and hope and 
splendid in dress and arras. They came back a few ragged 
and half-starved men, without gold to show, and with only 
battles and sufferings to tell of. And so ended one of the 
greatest and proudest of the Spanish expeditions in America. 

III.— THE INDIANS. 

Who owned the Land? — The English, the French, the 
Spanish, and other nations of Europe, as we have said, sent 
ships to America, and for a long time afterwards there were 
disputes and fights among them to decide who owned the 
land, and how it should be divided. Many good men now 



THE UNITED STATES. 25 

think that it did not l)elong to any of them, but to the old 
inhabitants of the country, and that the white men were 
little better than land pirates. 

Who were these old inhabitants ? Everywhere that the 
white men had landed they had found tribes of red or cop- 
per-colored men, some of whom were gentle and friendly, 
others fierce and warlike. Before we go on with our story 
we must tell something about these people. 

The Indians, as Columbus had named them, were found 
in every part of ]!^orth and South America, and had been 
there for a long time. Some of them were civilized, but 
the most of them were savages, and lived in a very rude 
manner. The Indians of this country which we now know 
as the United States were all savages, and were a fierce and 
cruel people, who spent much of their time in killing one 
another. Many of them dwelt in the forests, and lived by 
hunting. Others raised crops of Indian corn, and dwelt in 
towns and villages. 

The Mound-Builders. — Long ago, no one can tell how 
long, a people dwelt in this region who seem to have been 
very active and industrious. We know this because much 
of their work remains. In some of the Western States 
there are hills of earth, called by us mounds, which were 
made by the hands of men. Most of these are small, but 
some are very large. 

In these mounds have been found tools of stone and other 
substances, pots made of burnt clay, stone pipes, pieces of 
copper, and many other things. Some of these were made 
\vith great care and skill. The Mound-Builders seem to 
have had different customs from the present Indians. Some 
of their mounds must have taken years to build and the 
labor of thousands of people. 

Who these people were and what became of them nobody 



26 ^N ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

knows. Most writers think tliey were driven awa}' or killed 
by the Indians. Some think that they went south, and that 
the tribes which De Soto found there descended from them. 
These tribes had great mounds like those of the north, and 
had tools and ornaments, and many towns \\ath temples and 
priests, and strong governments. 

The Indians. — All we are sure of is that when white men 
came to America the country in which we now live was 
covered with forests, in which savages lived and hunted. 
These people were of a copper color, with black eyes and 
hair, and were divided into tribes. Some of them lived by 
raising corn and other vegetables, and others by hunting. 
Most of them dwelt in little tents covered with skin or bark, 
and called " wigwams," but some tribes built large houses, 
in which many families lived together. 

The Indians did not care much for their houses. They 
liked better to spend their time in the open air. They were 
very fond of roving about through the forests, hunting wild 
animals and fighting with one another. They dressed in 
the skins of these animals, painted their faces and bodies, 
and ornamented themselves with feathers and the claws of 
wild beasts. All the hair of their head was shaved off, ex- 
cept one lock, called the scalp-lock. When one of them 
was killed in war this lock was used to pull off his scalp, or 
the skin of his head. The Indians were very proud of the 
scalps which they took in war. 

They were fond of fighting, and very cruel to their prison- 
ers. It was their custom to tie these to a stake or tree, heap 
wood round them, and burn them to death. And they tor- 
tured them in every cruel way they could. The Indians 
fought with bows and arrows, and with stone hatchets 
called " tomahawks." But after the whites came to America 
they got iron hatchets and fire-arms, and dressed them- 



THE UNITED STATES. 



27 



selves iu blankets instead of the skins they had worn 
before. Some tribes built forts of timber, often in the 
midst of swamps. These were strong, and not easy to 
capture. 

Home Life. — At home the women had to do all the work. 
The men were too proud to do much but hunt and fight. 




AN INDIAN VILLAGE SCENE. 



They were very ex- 
pert in making stone 
pipes and weapons, 
and canoes of birch 
bark in which they 
paddled about the 

rivers. These canoes were very light. They could be car- 
ried long distances through the forests, and they floated 
lightly in the water. Fire was obtained by rubbing two 
sticks together until they became so hot as to break into a 
blaze.* 

The food of the Indians consisted of corn and a few 



* "Without fire civilization could not exist, so this method of making fire 
may be looked upon as one of the first steps towards the high civilization 
which we now enjoy. 



28 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OP 

vegetables they raised, and of the game they killed in the 
forests. They had tobacco, of which they were very fond, 
and which they soon taught the white men to smoke. In 
return the white men taught them to drink whisky, — a much 
worse gift than that of tobacco. Some writers think that 
whisky has killed more Indians than the musket. 

Government. — The tribes of the Indians were divided 
into smaller bodies, which may be called clans. Each clan 
paid great respect to some animal, which it called its totem, 
such as the wolf, the tortoise, the bear, etc. The clans had 
chiefs whom they called sachems, who ruled them in peace, 
and other chiefs who ruled them in war. A number of 
such clans formed a tribe, and several tribes joined together 
formed a league or confederacy. One of these leagues was 
known as the Iroquois, or the Six JS'ations, who lived in the 
region now known as ISTew York, and there w^ere others 
elsewhere. 

Religion. — The religious ideas of the Indians were very 
simple. Each Indian thought that he was taken care of by 
the spirit of the animal that formed his totem. He had great 
respect for this animal, though he did not mind killing the 
totem of other Indians. Most of them believed in spirits of 
the winds and stars, and many of them thought that there 
was a Great Spirit, who ruled over all men and all things.- 

Their priests they called " medicine men." These were 
their doctors as well as priests, and did everything by charms 
and spells. Many of them were great rogues. The tribes 
had religious songs and dances, and many other ceremonies, 
some of which were strange and noisy, and some very pain- 
ful and cruel. 

For money the Indians used round pieces of sea-shells, in 
which they bored holes and strung them on strings. This 
they called wampum. They knew nothing about reading 



THE UNITED STATES. 



29 



and writing, but used simple marks and signs by which they 
could tell one another many things. 

Their Sagacity. — The Indians were brave and bold, but 
could not be trusted. 
They would do anything 
to kill those whom they 
hated. They had won- 
derful skill in tracking 
their enemies through 
the ^\dlds and forests. 
Where white men could 
see nothing, the Indians 
could see the marks of 
footsteps on the dead 
leaves or the dry ground, 
and could follow a trail 
for many miles as easily 
as a dog can follow an 
animal by its scent. 

This made them very 
dangerous to the whites. 
They could travel very 
far in a day, and could 
go in a straight line 
through thick forests 
where the sun could not 
be seen. Many white 
travellers were captured 
and killed by them. But 
in time some of the whites 
learned the Indian ways, 
and could follow a trail as well as they. 

The Southern Tribes. — In the country near the Gulf of 




A FLLbLU l.NUl VN. 



30 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Mexico the Indians were more civilized than in the north. 
They had many towns or large villages, and their chiefs had 
much power. The sun was their god, and they had temples, 
with numbers of priests and much ceremony. Farther west, 
in the Rocky Mountain region, were tribes who built great 
stone houses, with hundreds of rooms, large enough for a 
whole tribe to live in one house. These are called the 
Pueblo Indians. 

Quarrels ■with the "Whites. — The Indians at first were 
friendly to the whites. They gave them land and were 
willing to help them in any way they could. But it was 
not long before quarrels began. Sometimes the white men 
were in the wrong, and sometimes the Indians, but dreadful 
scenes followed. The Indians would march silently through 
the forests and fall on the settlements, burning the houses 
and killing the people, or taking them away as prisoners. 
The whites would attack the tribes in return, and kill all the 
Indians they could. 

But the whites were the strongest and drove the Indians 
back step by step, and took possession of nearly the whole 
country. The savages now own only a small portion of the 
great continent which was once all their own. But they are 
forced to live in peace, and they are happier and better oflT 
than when most of their time was spent in war and blood- 
shed. 

IV.— FKENCH AND ENGLISH SETTLEMENTS. 

Many years passed away before any white men came to 
live in the country which is now known as the United 
States. The Spaniards had many towns and rich colonies 
in the West Indies, in Mexico, and in South America, but 
the northern country was still left to the Indians. No one 
cared to settle on its shores. jS^o gold or silver had been 



THE UNITED STATES. 31 

found there, and people in those days seemed to think there 
was nothing else worth having. Since then we have learned 
that the soil of the United States is far more valuable than 
all the gold and silver which the Spaniards found in 
America. 

Ribault's Colony. — It w^as not till 1562 that any settlers 
came. Then some Frenchmen crossed the ocean and built a 
fort at Port Royal, in South Carolina. They named the 
country Carolina, after Charles IX., the King of France. 
These men were known as Huguenots, or people of the 
Protestant religion, while the religion of France was the 
Catholic. They had left their country because they were 
badly treated on account of their difierence in belief. 

Jean Ribault, who brought them, soon went back to 
France. After he left the colony did not get on well. 
Most of the men were lazy and would not work, and the 
Indians soon refused to give them food. Many of them 
died, and those who remained alive built a rude sort of ves- 
sel and sailed away home. 

The Florida Colony. — Two years afterwards another party 
of Frenchmen came to America and built a fort near the 
mouth of the St. John's River, in Florida. This colony 
was as idle as the other. The men spent their time in hunt- 
ing for gold and fighting the Indians. They would not 
take the trouble to raise food from the earth, and they suf- 
fered from hunger till vessels came with food from France. 
Some of them turned pirates, and sailed away to rob the 
Spanish settlements. 

St. Augustine. — The Spaniards were very angry when 
they learned that the French had settled in Florida. They 
claimed this country as their own, and sent out a party to 
take possession and to drive out the French. This party 
was led by a man named Menendez, who laid out a town 



32 AN KLEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

which he called St, Augustine. It is of interest to remem- 
ber that this town, laid out in 1565, is the oldest town in 
the United States. The ruins of the old Spanish buildings 
may still be seen there. 

The Massacre. — And now began those terrible wars of 
white men which have shed so much blood on the soil of 
this land. Up to that time the fighting had all been A\dth 
the Indians, but now the whites began the dreadful work 
of killing one another. Menendez led his men through the 
woods and swamps of Florida to the French settlement. 
There they took Fort Carolina — the French fort — by sur- 
prise, and killed all the people they found in it, except a 
few who escaped to the woods. 

The Spaniards did a more cruel deed than this. A part 
of the French had gone to attack St. Augustine, but their 
vessel was wrecked on the coast, and the men barely saved 
their lives. They wandered half starved through the woods 
till they found themselves in sight of St. Augustine. 

Menendez told them that if they would come over the 
river into the town no harm should be done to them. But 
as fast as they came over he had their arms tied behind 
them, and he then set his soldiers on them and murdered 
them all. Four hundred men were slain in that awful 
massacre. 

Menendez had these words placed on the trees near by : 
" I do this not as to Frenchmen, but as to Lutherans." It 
was religious hatred that made him do this cruel deed. 

The Massacre revenged. — When the news of this deed 
of bloodshed came to France the people were full of anger. 
One soldier, named Dominique de Gourgues, resolved to be 
revenged. He sailed for Florida with three small ships, and 
took Fort Carolina by sni-prise, as the Spaniards had before 
taken it froni the French. There were more than three 



THE UNITED STATES. 



33 



hundred men in it, most of whom were killed. Only sixty 
were taken prisoners. 

De Gourgues wrote the following words, and placed them 
where all could see : " I do this not to Spaniards, but to 
traitors, thieves, and murderers." Then he hanged all his 
prisoners, destroyed the fort, and sailed back to France. 
The murder of the Protestants had been terribly revenged. 

Sir Humphrey Gilbert. — The English were the next peo- 
ple who tried to make settlements in America. Sir Hum- 
phrey Gilbert came across the ocean in 1583 to form a 
colony. But a storm arose, and the leader and his vessel, 
with all on board, went to the bottom. One of his ships 
reached England with the news of his loss. 

Sir Walter Raleigh. — The next year a young man named 
Walter Raleigh, half-brother to Gilbert, sent an expedition 
to the New World, and in 1585 he sent seven ships with 
a hundred persons on board to make a settlement on 
Roanoke Island, on the coast of North 
Carolina. 

These people soon got into trouble 
with the Indians, and all returned to 
England in an English vessel that 
happened to stop at the island. They 
took with them the first tobacco that 
was ever seen in Europe. Sir Walter 
Raleigh is said to have been the first 
man who smoked tobacco in Europe. 
The story is told that a servant who 

came into his room while he was smoking thought that he 
was in flames, and threw a bucket of water over him to put 
out the fire. 

The Lost Colony. — The next summer Raleigh sent another 
colony to Roanoke Island. A child, named Virginia Dare, 










34 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

was born in this colony, — the first English child born in 
America. 

There was war then between England and Spain, and it 
was three years before another vessel could be sent across 
the ocean. Wlien it got to Roanoke Island the colony was 
gone. Not a man, woman, or child could be found. There 
were some letters cut in the bark of a tree, and that was 
all that was left to show that white men had ever been 
there. 

Raleigh sent vessel after vessel to search for his lost col- 
ony, but no trace of it could ever be found. "What became 
of the colonists no one will ever know. If the Indians knew 
they would not tell, and the secret died with them. 

Other Expeditions. — No other efforts were made to place 
colonies in the region of the United States till after the year 
1600, more than a century after the discovery by Columbus. 
One captain, named Bartholomew Gosnold, brought out a 
colony to America in 1602; but he took it back again, 
because he was short of food and the men feared they might 
starve. 

The French were more successful than the English. In 
1605 a Frenchman, named De Monts, placed a colony in 
Nova Scotia, at a place which he called Port Royal. This 
place, which became famous in after years, is on the coast 
of the Bay of Fundy. It was the first permanent French 
colony in America. 

Champlain in America. — Before speaking of the English 
and Dutch colonies that were formed soon afterwards we 
must say something about the doings of a Frenchman, 
named Samuel de Champlain, who was the first white man 
that had much to do ^\dth the Indians of the north. 

He went up the St. LaA\Tence River in 1603, and came 
again in 1608, when he founded the city of Quebec. This old 



THE UNITED STATES. 



35 



city still stands on the rocky hill where he placed it. It is a 
quaint, old-fashioned place, with many ancient houses. 

Champlain was a bold and active man and very fond of 
travel and adventure. He had the hope that he might find 
a way across the country by the rivers and lakes, and so 
reach China. But there were savage Indians in his way. 
In what we know as the State of New York were the Iroquois 
tribes of Indians, or the " Five Nations" as they are usually 
called. Farther north were the Hurons and other tribes of 
the St. Lawrence, who were enemies of the Iroquois. 

The First Indian Battle. — Champlain and some com- 
panions went in boats up the St. Lawrence and the St. John 




BATTLE KLTWKEN XlIE FKliNCU A.N1> INiilANf 



Rivers, while the Hurons and other tribes followed in their 
canoes. They were going to fight with their enemies, the 



36 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Iroquois, and the French had promised to help them. It 
was not long before the boats came out on a beautiful lake 
which the eyes of white men had never seen before. It is 
called Lake Champlain, after its discoverer. 

On the shores of this lake they met the Iroquois, and a 
fierce battle began, — the first battle with the Indians in the 
northern part of the New World. The Iroquois were brave 
warriors and fought boldly, but when Cham})lain and the 
two white men who were with him stood forward and fired 
their muskets they were filled with terror. They had never 
seen anything of the kind before. The noise seemed to 
them like thunder. Their chiefs began to fall dead, with 
nothing to show what had killed them. 

"With a yell of fear the Indians fled. They left everything 
in their fright. Some of them were killed; more were 
taken prisoners. These the Hurons took back with them to 
torture and burn at the stake. 

Champlain had many other adventures among the Indians. 
In 1614 he went south with a war party of Hurons, and 
made an attack on a fort of the Iroquois. The fight was a 
hard one, but the Hurons were driven off", and Champlain 
was twice wounded. 

The Revenge of the Iroquois. — The Iroquois took a terri- 
ble revenge on their enemies. Champlain, whom they were 
afraid of, died in 1635. In 1648 they made an attack on the 
French in Canada, and killed a great many of them. The 
tribe of the Hurons was broken up and destroyed. For 
many years afterwards the Iroquois were lords of that region 
and kept the French shut uj) in their forts. They had ceased 
to fear the fire-arms of the whites. 

The Iroquois consisted of five tribes, the Mohawks, the 
Oneidas, the Onondagas, the Cayugas, and the Senecas. 
Afterwards another tribe^ the Tuscaroras, joined them, and 



THE UNITED STATES. 



37 



they became known as the " Six Nations." They gave much 
trouble to the whites in later years. 

Henry Hudson. — There was one other voyage of which 
we must speak. This was made by the Dutch, who then 
were a very active nation, and thought they ought to have 
a share in the New World. So they sent across the ocean a 
vessel which had the odd name of the Half Moon. Its cap- 
tain was Henry Hudson, an Englishman. This was in the 
year 1609. 

The Half Moon sailed along the coast until it reached 
New York Bay. Then it went up this bay until it came 
into the great river which has ever since been known as 
Hudson River. Here some of the Indian chiefs came on 
board and received a fatal 
present from the hands 
of the captain. We have 
told how the tobacco of 
the Indians was taken 
to Europe. In return 
the white men brought 
brandy to the Indians. 
Hudson gave the chiefs 
some of this strong liquor 
to drink, and they be- 
came intoxicated. This 

was probably the first knowledge the Indians had of that 
poison which has since killed more of them than the rifle. 

The Half Moon sailed up the river as far as it could go. 
On coming back the Dutch were attacked by the Indians, 
but some cannon were fired and the savages fled in the ut- 
most terror. Hudson now sailed back to Europe with the 
story of the discovery he had made. He afterwards discovered 
Hudson Bay, which was also named after him. 




- yxfc.fctii. 



THE HALF MOON IN THE Hl'DSON. 



38 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



PART I.-QUESTIONS FOR EXAMINATION. 

I. What was known of the world four hundred years ago? What was 
thought would happen to vessels that sailed out of sight of land ? What is 
the mariner's compass? What journey did Marco Polo make? What did 
the Northmen discover? Who was Christopher Columbus? How did he 
think Asia could be reached? What troubles did he have ? When did he 
sail on his voyage of discovery ? Why were the sailors afraid ? What made 
them think they were near land ? On what day was land discovered ? What 
were the inhabitants like ? Why were they called Indians ? Describe the 
landing of Columbus. What stories were told by the sailors when they re- 
turned to Spain? How was Columbus received? What was his history 
afterwards ? 

II. Who was John Cabot? Describe his voyage. What did Sebastian 
Cabot discover? What did the fishermen do? Describe the voyage of Ver- 
razano. What did Cartier do ? Who was Ponce de Leon ? What did he 
discover? What did Balboa discover? What conquests were made by Cor- 
tez and Pizarro ? Where did Narvaez go ? What did De Soto seek ? Where 
did he journey ? Describe his death and burial. 

III. What kind of people were found in America? Who were the Mound- 
Builders ? What relics did they leave? What wore the Indians like? How 
did they live? How did they treat their prisoners? How did they fight? 
How did they live in their homes? How were they governed? What was 
the character of their religion? What did they use for money? What is 
said of their sagacity ? Were the southern tribes more civilized than the 
northern? What did they worship? How did they receive the whites? 
How have the whites treated them ? 

IV. Who first settled in the United States ? How did Kibault's colony 
behave ? Describe the Florida colony. When did the Spaniards lay out St. 
Augustine? What did Menendez do at Fort Carolina? How did he treat 
the shipwrecked Frenchmen ? What did De Gourges do ? When did Sir 
Humphrey Gilbert come to America? Where did Sir Walter Raleigh plant 
a colony ? Tell how tobacco was first taken to Europe. What became of 
Raleigh's colony ? When and where was the first permanent French colony 
formed? When did Champlain found Quebec? What did he hope to do? 
What lake did he discover ? Describe his battle with the Iroquois. How did 
the Iroquois revenge themselves ? What river did Henry Hudson discover ? 
How did he act with the Indian chiefs? 



THE UNITED STATES. 



39 



PART II. 

THE ENGLISH COLONIES. 
I.— VIEGINIA. 



The English Companies. — In 1606 two companies were 
formed in England to make settlements in America. One 




JAMESTOWN POINT, LOOKING UP THE P.IVER. 



of these was called the London Company, and the other 
the Plymouth Company. At that time the whole country 



40 ^^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

between the French settlements in the north and the Span- 
ish settlements in the south was named Virginia, after Queen 
Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen of England. Now, only a small 
portion of this broad region is called Virginia. 

Both companies sent out colonies in 1607. One of these, 
sent by the Plymouth Company, settled on the coast of 
Maine ; but the people were not satisfied, and went back the 
next year. The other, sent by the London Company, was 
told to land on Roanoke Island, where Raleigh's lost colony 
had been ; but a storm drove the vessels into Chesapeake 
Bay. Here the colonists discovered a beautiful river, which 
they named the James, after the King of England. They 
landed at a point some distance up the river, and formed a 
settlement which they called Jamestown. 

This colony was like all those before it. I^obody wanted 
to work. Some of the men thought they could cross the 
country to the Pacific Ocean. Others spent their time 
hunting for gold. They found a yellow substance which 
they thought was gold, and sent a ship-load of it to England. 
But it was nothing but iron p^-rites, or " fool's gold," and 

of no value whatever ; so the gold- 
hunters, who had fixneied them- 
selves rich, soon found themselves 
poor again. 

Captain John Smith. — By good 
luck this colony had with it a man 
who was worth more to it than a 
mine of gold. This was Captain 
John Smith, a celebrated soldier, 
who had been in wars in Europe, 
and had gone through many strange 
adventures. Captain Smith was a very active man. He went 
to work himself and kept the colonists at work with him 




THE UNITED STATES. 



41 



cutting down trees and building houses. Those who would 
not work were given nothing to eat. Some of them swore 
very much, but he soon cured them of this. When night 
came he brought up the swearers and had a can of cold 
water poured down their sleeves for every time they had 
sworn during the day. We may imagine that laziness and 
swearing were quickly broken up in that colony. 

Captain Smith spent much of his time in exploring the 
bay and the country. On one of these journeys he was taken 
prisoner by the Indians, who killed his companions. They 
were about to kill him too, but he saved his life by showing 
them a small compass which he had with him. The move- 
ments of the magnetic needle seemed to them the work of 
magic, so they let him live, and brought him before their 
great chief, Powhatan. He surprised them still more by 
writing a letter to his friends and receiving an answer from 
them. The Indians could not understand how a piece of 
paper could talk. Smith's friends 
understood what was on it, and the 
savages thought the paper must 
have spoken to them. 

Pocahontas. — But Powhatan did 
not lilie the English, and he decided 
that his prisoner should be put to 
death. Captain Smith tells us that 
he was laid on the ground, with his 
head on a stone, and that Powhatan 
had lifted a club to dash out his 
brains, when a young Indian girl 
named Pocahontas, the daughter 
of the chief, rushed in and begged her father not to kill 
him. So his life was spared. 

Pocahontas afterwards married an Englishman named 




POCAHONTAS. 



42 ^N ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Rolfe, and went with him to England. She did not live 
long after she reached there. Captain Smith had other 
adventures with the Indians and much trouble \\dth the 
colonists. In 1609 he was badly hurt by the explosion of a 
bag of gunpowder, and went back to England. He never 
returned to Virginia. 

The Starving Time. — As soon as Captain Smith left the 
colony everything went wrong. Nobody would work ; they 
ate up all their provisions ; and the Indians were made so 
angry that they would not bring them any food. A terrible 
time followed. The foolish people soon found themselves 
starving. There were nearly five hundred of them, but in 
six months only sixty were alive. In a little time more not 
a soul of them would have been living if a vessel had not 
come in with provisions. This period was long known as 
" the starving time." 

A new governor, Lord Delaware, came out in this vessel. 
He was a sensible man, and things soon went well again. 
More colonists came, and the land was divided into farms 
and much food raised. The starving time had taught them 
a useful lesson. 

Tobacco Culture. — In 1612 the colonists began to raise 
tobacco. Much of the soil was given to this new crop, and 
so little corn was raised that there began to be danger 
again of want of food. In 1619 a Dutch ship came up 
the James with twenty negroes on board. These were 
sold to the colonists, and were the first slaves brought to 
America. 

The negroes were not the only human beings that were 
sold to the colonists. Until this time the colony had con- 
sisted only of men ; now, young women were sent over from 
England and sold to the colonists as wives. The price paid 
for a wife was one hundred and twenty pounds of tobacco. 



THE UNITED STATES. 43 

Sixty more women were sent afterwards, and the price rose 
to one hundred and fifty pounds of tobacco. 

The Indian Massacre, — Two years afterwards, in 1622, 
when much of the country around Jamestown had been 
settled, the Indians formed a plan to kill all the white 
people in the colony. They pretended to be very friendly, 
and brought deer and fish and other things to sell. But 
suddenly they drew out their weapons and began to kill 
the settlers. Men, women, and children were cut to pieces, 
and in one morning three hundred and forty-nine persons 
were slain. 

Jamestown was warned in time, and was saved, but very 
few of the whites were left alive in the outer settlements. A 
fierce war followed. The Indians were shot down wherever 
they were seen. The English ofifered peace to them, and 
then rushed on them when they were at work in their corn- 
fields, and killed a great many of them. 

Another Indian massacre took place in 1644, after which 
the red men were driven far back into the country, and did 
not give any trouble for many years. 

Bacon's Rebellion. — During these years, and for a long 
time afterwards, the people of Virginia had trouble with 
their governors. They were not permitted to manage their 
own affairs, and much bitter feeling arose. One governor, 
named Berkeley, was such a tyrant that the people would no 
longer submit to him. 

The Indians were again at war with the whites, and a 
young man named Nathaniel Bacon raised a company and 
drove them away. This was in 1676. The governor said 
that Bacon was a traitor, because he had raised his company 
without permission. But the people were so angry that they 
came to Bacon's help, and fighting took place. The gov- 
ernor was driven out of Jamestown, and the town itself 



44 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



burned to the ground. Nothing of Jamestown now remains 
except the ruined walls of an old church. 

Soon after this Bacon died. Berkeley now got into 
power again and began to revenge himself by hanging his 
enemies. More than twenty of the leaders of the people 
were hung. 

"When the king heard of this he ordered Berkeley to come 




RUINS OF THE OLD CHURCH-TOWER, JAMESTOWN, VIRGINIA. 



home, and sent out governors in his own name to the colony. 
Other troubles arose, but for the next hundred years Virginia 
grew and prospered, and many of its people became rich 
and honored. 



THE UNITED STATES. 



45 



II.— THE PILGRIMS AND THE PURITANS. 

The Pilgrims. — At the time that Captain John Smith was 
having his adventures with the Indians in Virginia, and 
Champlain was fighting with the Iroquois in New York, 




Li^DIN(J oi nih pnoLiMS. 



some Enghsh people had found that they could not live in 
peace at home. They thought that every man ought to 
have a right to read the Bible for himself and form his own 
opinion about it. But the government said that they must 
believe what the Church of England taught. As they could 
not do this, they were treated badly by the government ; so 
they went to Holland and lived there for a number of years. 
Then the}' made up their minds to cross the ocean and 
settle in America. They were afraid that if they stayed in 



46 ^N ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Holland their children might forget their language and be- 
come in all things like the Dutch. One hundred and two 
of them set sail from England in a little vessel called the 
Mayflower. They did not know just to what part of America 
they would go, but storms made them land at a place near 
Cape Cod. 

It was then the month of December of the year 1620. 
The weather was cold and the ground was covered with 
snow, but the people decided to settle in that region, so they 
landed at a place which had been named Plymouth by Cap- 
tain John Smith, who had explored that coast several years 
before. On reaching the shore they fell on their knees and 
thanked God for having brought them in safety to this new 
land. These people are known as Pilgrims, because they 
had left their homes and crossed the ocean on account of 
their religion, like the old-time pilgrims to the Holy Land. 

The First Winter. — The Pilgrims were not idle, like the 
men of the other colonies we have described. They went 
to work at once to build a house to shelter them and their 
goods. And they formed a government of their own, in 
which every man was to have a vote and to be the equal of 
every other man. But they had great hardships to endure, 
and nearly half of them died before spring. 

^Vlien the winter was gone they did not spend their time 
hunting for gold or wandering about the country. They 
kept on building until they had a house for each family, and 
also began to till the soil. The Indians were friendly, and 
showed them how to plant corn. They had with them a 
military man named Captain Miles Standish, but he was a 
very different person from Captain John Smith. He was 
an old soldier who had joined the colony to do their fight- 
ing for them, if any was necessary, — a little man, very short, 
but of a hot temper, — and it was not long before he began 



THE UNITED STATES. 47 

the work of killing Indians. He was so bold that on one 
occasion he stabbed an Indian chief in the midst of his 
tribe. 

The Plymouth colony was not like any of the others 
formed in America. The people had not been sent out by 
any company, and had no masters beyond the seas. They 
were free to serve God and to take care of themselves in 
their own way. They elected a governor and other officers, 
and formed a little republic of their own. They suffered 
from the cold and from want of food, but the fishing was 
good and there were plenty of clams, so they managed to 
live. The land was soon divided into farms, and every man 
worked for himself, and before long enough corn was raised 
to give them all food. 

Canonicus. — The Indians at first were friendly, but some 
of them became uneasy when they saw that the white men 
intended to stay in their country. So Canonicus, the chief 
of the tribe of Narragansetts, sent them a bundle of arrows 
with a snake-skin tied around them. This meant that if 
the whites did not leave the land the Indians would make 
war upon them. But the governor took the snake-skin and 
filled it with powder and bullets ; then he sent it back to 
Canonicus. The savages were scared when they saw what 
had been sent them. They were afraid to receive it, and it 
passed from hand to hand and finally came back to the gov- 
ernor at Plymouth. So there was no war at that time. In 
1623 the Indians formed a conspiracy to murder the settlers ; 
but Captain Standish discovered it and killed the ring- 
leaders. After that the Indians kept quiet for years. 

The Massachusetts Bay Colony. — Plymouth was part of 
the country which the king had granted to the Plymouth 
Company, so that the colony came under the charter of this 
company. But they continued to govern themselves in their 



48 -^N ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

own way, and paid no attention to the company. Other 
people came out from time to time. In 1629 five vessel- 
loads sailed over from England and settled at a place in 
Massachusetts Bay, which they called Salem. 

The next year eight hundred more came. There were 
now about a thousand men in the colony of Massachusetts 
Bay. These were not all poor people, like those at Ply- 
mouth. Some of them were rich, and many of them were 
educated. Like the Pilgrims, it was religious trouble that 
brought them over the ocean. They were called Puritans, 
and had left England because they could not worship God 
in their own way at home. 

The Charter. — The king had given them a charter by 
which they gained the right to govern themselves. They 
did not leave this charter in England, for they did not wish 
to be ruled by a company in London, but they brought it 
across the ocean with them. This was a bold step. The 
reign of liberty in America began with that charter. 

These colonists had much to endure. Many of them died. 
But there were no idle men among them, and they sought 
for corn instead of gold, so that they were soon comfortable. 
Settlements were made all around Massachusetts Bay. Bos- 
ton, Roxbury, Charlestown, and other places were added 
to Salem. The colony grew much faster than that of 
Plymouth. 

Representative Government. — As we have said, the gov- 
ernment was at first in the hands of all the people. They 
met together in the churches and elected their officers, and 
decided any question that came before them. But in 1634 
this was no longer easy to do. The people had increased 
till there were more than three thousand of them. These 
were settled at twenty difierent places along the sea-shore. 
They could not all come together to decide questions, and 



# 

THE UNITED STATES. 49 

they chose persons to act for them. These met together at 
Boston, where they made laws and elected officers. The 
first assembly of this kind in America had been formed 
in Virginia in 1619, but it did not have the power of the 
Boston assembly, which made all the laws of the colony ; 
and these were carried out by a governor elected by them- 
selves, not by one sent from England. 

Other Colonies. — The Puritans kept on coming across the 
ocean, so that in ten years there were about twenty thousand 
people in New England. These were widely spread through 
the country. Some of them settled in Connecticut. The 
Dutch had built a fort at the mouth of the Connecticut 
River, but they were driven away by the English. There 
were settlements also in ITew Hampshire and Maine. 

Roger Williams. — And now we have to tell of some very 
wrong doings of the Puritans. They had come to America 
because they were not allowed to worship God in peace at 
home ; but they soon began to say that nobody should 
worship God in ISTew England except in their way. One 
minister, named Roger Williams, declared that the magis- 
trates had no right to tell a man what his religion should 
be. He said also that the white men had no claim to the 
land unless they paid the Indians for it. 

The Puritans thought that this was dangerous talk, and 
declared that no man should preach such doctrines in their 
churches. Williams would not be silent, so they drove him 
out of the colony. He went into the forests^ where the 
Indians took care of him. At length he reached Narragan- 
sett Bay, and crossed it in an Indian canoe to a place which 
he called Providence. The Indians loved the young exile, 
and Canonicus, the chief, gave him a large tract of land. 

Rhode Island. — There were other persons besides Roger 
Williams who could not live in peace with the Puritans. 

4 



50 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Many of these followed him. In the settlement which they 
formed every one was allowed to think on religious subjects 
as he pleased. It was one of the first places in the world in 
which there was full religious liberty and in which no man 
was persecuted for his opinions. 

One of the new settlers, named William Coddington, 
bought an island from the Indians, which was called Rhode 
Island. This afterwards became the name of the State. A 
charter was given to the colony, and its people slowly grew 
in numbers. They were so afraid of tyrants that when 
Roger Williams refused to be governor the colony went with- 
out one for forty years. Williams was very just and kind 
to the Indians, and they looked on him as their best friend. 

The Quakers. — But the Puritans soon did worse things 
than to drive Roger Williams into the wilderness. When 
it was known in England that there was a colony in America 
formed by people who wished to worship God in peace and 
freedom, others besides the Puritans made haste to come to 
this free land. Among these were a number of the people 
known as Quakers, who had been very harshly treated in 
England. 

Several of these came to Plymouth and Salem, but they 
Boon found that they were no better oS in America than in 
England. They would not go to war, or pay taxes, or 
attend the Puritan churches, and they would not leave the 
colony when they were ordered to do so. Some of them 
grew so excited as to be half crazy, and would come into 
the meeting-house on Sunday with clothes made of sack- 
cloth, and with ashes on their heads. They did other things 
more foolish still. 

The Persecution. — As they would not leave the colony, 
the Puritans began to persecute them. Some of them were 
whipped in the streets, and others were branded with hot 



THE UNITED STATES. 61 

iron. Four of them were hanged. And not only the ex- 
cited ones, but the quiet and well-behaved ones were treated 
with great severity. The Puritans have been much blamed 
for this cruelty. They had left England because men would 
not let them think as they pleased, and now they were act- 
ing the same way to others who wished to think as they 
pleased. But they could not drive the Quakers out by 
severity, and they finally let them alone. 

The Salem 'Witchcraft. — It was not long before they 
began to persecute another set of people. In those days 
all ignorant persons and some learned ones believed in 
witches. It was thought that certain people had the power 
to bewitch and hurt others by a sort of magic. That was 
the belief all over Europe, and thousands of persons were 
put to death as witches. 

Some poor persons in Salem were accused of being witches, 
and a court was held to try them. Very strange things were 
said to have been done, and fifty of them were declared 
guilty. Twenty of these were hanged. The excitement 
spread, and people of high character were accused of witch- 
craft. And now the wiser people began to fear there must 
be something ^^Tong in the public belief. "When these 
respectable persons were brought to trial, the judges said 
that such persons could not be witches, and set them free. 
The foolish notion died away as quickly as it had risen. 
All sensible people were very much ashamed of themselves 
for having believed in such folly ; and they could not easily 
forget that they had put to death innocent persons for a crazy 
delusion. This excitement continued from 1688 to 1693. 

Mode of Government. — The l!^ew England colonies all 
followed Massachusetts in her mode of government. The 
English kings had left the colonists to act as they pleased, 
and there was no company in England that had anything to 



52 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

do with, them, so the people were as free as if they had had 
no connection with Enghmd. In all the other colonies there 
were governors sent out by the king, the companies, or tlR; 
proprietors ; but the Puritans chose their own governors and 
made their own laws. 

We have already told what the government was like. But 
in 1643 a new step in political conditions was made.. The 
four colonies of Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Haven, 
and Plymouth joined themselves into a league, or confed- 
eracy, and each colony chose two men to represent it. This 
was something like the present government of the United 
States, and the meeting of deputies from the colonies was 
like a little Congress. N'ew England was a free republic at 
that early date. 

The Charters revoked. — But the people of New England 
were not left at ease after Charles II. became king. He did 
not wish them to have so much liberty, and he declared that 
the charter of Massachusetts was no longer good, and that 
he would rule the colony himself. 

Just then Charles II. died, but the next king, James II., 
was still more severe. He said that all the New England colo- 
nies were his, that he would make the laws and levy the 
taxes, and that the people should have no voice in the gov- 
ernment. He sent Sir Edmund Andros to be royal governor, 
and demanded that all the charters should be given up. 

But the new governor did not succeed very well. Wlien 
he came to Hartford the assembly met to decide whether 
they should obey his order and give up their charter. The 
charter was laid on the table. It was evening and candles 
were lighted. Suddenly the candles all went out and the 
room was left in darkness. Wlien they were relighted the 
charter was gone. It is said that one of the members had 
flung his cloak over the candles and carried off the charter, 



THE UNITED STATES. 53 

which he hid in a hollow tree, where it stayed for years. 
This tree was long known as the Charter Oak. 

Wliile the governor was in Boston news reached there 
that the people of England had risen against the king. So 
the governor was imprisoned, and the people took the gov- 
ernment again into their own hands. But it was not long 
before the new king sent them a new governor. 

Ill— INDIAN WARS OF NEW ENGLAND. 

English and Indians. — The settlers of New England very- 
soon had trouble with the Indians. Shortly after the Pil- 
grims landed a chief had come to them, with the words, 
"Welcome, Englishmen." He had learned these words 
from some of those people who had crossed the ocean in 
search of fish. But before long this friendly feeling passed 
away. The English did not treat the Indians well. Cap- 
tain Standish was very stern and severe with them, and 
killed several of them. And the settlers went farther and 
farther into the land, and came over the ocean in such 
numbers that the red men began to fear that all their coun- 
try would be taken from them. 

The Pequot War. — Yet it was not in Massachusetts but 
in Connecticut that the first fighting took place. Here there 
was a fierce and warlike tribe called the Pequots, who be- 
came very angry on seeing the white men settling on their 
lands. They began to kill the whites whenever they found 
them alone. The English killed some of them in return, 
and then a deadly war began. N'o white man could leave 
the fort without danger of being murdered by the savages. 

The settlers soon made up their minds to put an end to 
this. So they got together a party of soldiers and sent them 
against the Pequot fort. There were ninety white men 



54 -AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

and several hundred friendly Indians, led by Captain John 
Mason. The Indian fort was near where the town of Ston- 
ington is now built. It was made of trunks of trees, about 
twelve feet high, set close together in the ground. The 
Indian allies were left outside while the English forced their 
way into the fort and set fire to the wigwams of the 
Pequots. Then the fight began in the smoke and flame, 
and nearly all the Pequots were killed, while only two white 
men were slain. 

There were some Pequots outside the fort, but these were 
followed and the most of them killed. This battle so 
frightened the Indians that there was very little trouble 
with them in Xew England for forty years afterwards. 

King Philip's "War. — The next war mth the Indians began 
in 1675. The tribe of the Wampanoags had always been 
friendly witli the whites ; but the old sachem died and his 
son, named Philip, became sachem. He hated the whites, 
and got some of the other tribes to join him in a war against 
them. One of these tribes was the Narragansetts, of Rhode 
Island, who had, until now, been kept friendly by Roger 
Williams. 

The war that followed was a terrible one. The Indians 
were no longer afraid to touch powder and bullets. They 
had thrown aside the boAV and arrow and taken the musket 
for their weapon, and they now attacked the settlements 
in all directions. They drove off the cattle, destroyed the 
crops, and burned the houses, while many of the white 
people were murdered. Several towns were taken by the 
Indians and burned, and the whole country was thrown 
into a state of terror. 

Defeat of the Narragansetts. — But the killing of a few 
hundred persons could not drive the white people from the 
country, for by this time there were about sixty thousand of 



THE UNITED STATES. 55 

them in New England. They made up their minds to pun- 
ish the Indians and put an end to the war. So a force of 
fifteen hundred men was sent against the Narragansetts, 
who had a strong fort in the centre of a great swamp. 
They thought they were safe there ; but the soldiers got into 
their fort, killed a thousand of them, and forced the others 
to flee for their lives. This was in the winter, and many 
more of the savages died from cold and hunger, as they had 
no place of shelter and very little to eat. 

Death of Philip. — This dreadful affair broke the power 
of the Indians ; but parties of them wandered about the 
settlements, and killed men, women, and children wherever 
they could. The people grew furious at this, and hunted 
the savages like wild beasts. Philip and his followers were 
chased from place to place. In August, 1676, they went to 
Mount Hope, Rhode Island, and here they were surprised 
by a party of soldiers and Indians. Philip started up to flee 
for his life, when he was shot by an Indian and fell dead. 

This ended the war. All danger from the Indians was 
at an end, except in Maine and New Hampshire, where the 
settlements were weak. The whites had suffered terribly. 
About six hundred of them had been murdered. Twelve 
or thirteen towns, with about six hundred houses, had been 
burned. But the tribes were broken up, and many of the 
Indians sent to the West Indies to be sold for slaves. 

The First French and Indian Wars. — The next troubles 
in New England were stirred up by the French, who began 
a war in Europe with the English in 1689, and again in 
1702. The French and English in America were not satis- 
fied to let all the fighting be done on the other side of the 
ocean, but thought that they must do what they could to 
kill one another, though they had nothing to do with the 
war. Many of the Northern Indians took the side of the 



56 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

French, and came clown from Canada to attack the English 
settlements. Farm-houses and villages were burned, and 
hundreds of the people were killed or carried off as pris- 
oners. The whole country was kept in a state of terror for 
years. 

Mrs. Dustin's Escape. — We may tell the story of one of 
these prisoners. This was a brave woman named Mrs. 
Dustin, who was carried off from the town of Haverhill, in 
Massachusetts, with her baby, her nurse, and a young boy. 
The Indians soon killed the baby, but they took the others 
for many miles through the forest. Mrs. Dustin found out 
that the Indians were going to torture and kill them at the 
end of their journey, so she resolved to try to escape. They 
were now on an island in the Merrimac River, and that 
night the Indians lay down to sleep, not dreaming that they 
were in any danger from their prisoners. There were 
twelve of these Indians, and they had no fear of two women 
and a boy. But Mrs. Dustin told her companions what 
she wanted them to do, and while the savages lay asleep the 
three prisoners took possession of their tomahawks and 
began killing them. They worked so quickly that ten of 
the Indians were killed. The other two ran for their lives 
into the forest. The brave woman took their canoe and 
floated down the river till she got safely to her home again. 
There is a statue of Mrs. Dustin now in Haverhill, and a 
monument on the Merrimac liiver, at the point where the 
Indians were slain. 

There were many more horrible events in these wars. 
Some large villages, such as Schenectady in New York, 
and Deerlield in Massachusetts, were taken and burned, and 
the people murdered or carried oif prisoners. It was a 
terribly cold winter, yet many of the people of Deerfield 
were made to walk through the woods to Canada with very 



THE UNITED STATES. 57 

little clothing and scarcely anything to eat. There they 
were sold to the French as slaves. 

The pioneers of America led a life of great danger and 
terror, very different from anything that is known here to- 
day. The men worked in the fields with their rifles by 
their sides, and each house was built like a strong fort, for 
no one knew at what moment the savages might burst with 
a yell from the woods and fall on them with musket and 
tomahawk. These were times such as can never come again 
in this peaceful country. 

IV.— MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE PUEITANS. 

To tell what laws a people made, what wars they fought, 
and what things they did is not to tell their whole story. 
To tell how they lived, what their houses and churches were 
like, what work they did, and how they enjoyed themselves 
is quite as important and as interesting. So it is our pur- 
pose now to say something about the manners and customs 
of the people of New England. 

Puritan Houses. — In the early period of the country there 
were none of the great and beautiful buildings we see to- 
day. Most of the houses were log huts, only one story 
high, with very steep roofs which were covered with thatch. 
But there were some few houses made of wood and brick 
and some of stone, two stories high. As time went on the 
houses became larger, but the largest of them would seem 
small to us. 

In these houses were large fireplaces, built of stone, in 
some of which logs four feet long could be burned. The 
chimneys were made of boards, or of sticks smeared with 
clay. There was very little glass for the windows, and 
oiled paper was used instead. When glass was used it was 



58 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

made in small and thick diamond-shaped panes, which were 
set in frames of lead. Furniture was not plentiful, and was 
very rude in shape and finish, with none of the beauty and 
art of the furniture of our modern houses. There were few 
clocks, and most people had to tell the time from the sun. 
For this purpose the houses were built so as to face exactly 
south. In this way the people knew when the sun shone 
squarely into the rooms that it was noon and time for 
dinner. 

Dress. — The Puritans dressed quite plainly, and very 
differently from what we do now. The men wore knee- 
breeches and short cloaks, with ruff's about their necks, and 
steeple-crowned hats ; tliey had rich belts, gold and silver 
buttons, and high boots rolled over at top for great occa- 
sions. The women wore dresses of plain homespun during 
the week, and silk hoods, lace neckerchiefs, and other finery 
on Sunday. 

But the law required that everybody should dress to suit 
his or her station in life. Workingmen wore breeches of 
leather or coarse goods, and red or green baize jackets, with 
somewhat finer clothes for Sunday; while the gentleman 
wore his robe of silk or velvet, with lace ruffles at his wrists 
and gold lace on his cloak. A gold-headed cane and a gold 
or silver snuff-box were thought necessary to a gentleman. 
But whoever wore fine clothes could be punished unless he 
could prove that he was rich enough to afford them. 

Titles. — The titles of Mr. and Mrs. were not so common 
as they are to day. They were used only to clergymen and 
magistrates, and to people of very high position. Every- 
body else, except servants, was called Good-man, or Good- 
wife. Much respect was shown to persons of education. 
As the colonies grew richer great display was made by 
wealthy people. Fine houses were built, elegant furniture 



THE UNITED STATES. 59 

and dress were imported, and there was much show and 
pride. 

Food. — Food was by no means of as great a variety as 
we now have. There was no way to bring fruits from other 
parts of the world, or to preserve vegetables and meats for 
the winter, as is now done so largely. Corn meal and milk, 
or pork and beans, were common food, while bread was 
generally made of rye and Indian meal. Tea and coffee 
were not used, but there was much beer and cider drunk. 
Amusements were very simple. No one was allowed to 
dance, or to play cards, and there was not much music, 
while such a thing as a theatre was unknown. The Puritans 
were simple and strict in all their habits. 

Laws and Penalties. — The laws were very severe. There 
were whipping-posts, where persons might be whipped in 
public for doing many things which are now not considered 
crimes. There were also stocks or wooden frames which 
could be locked around the neck or the feet, in which 
offenders were fastened and left to the scorn of the public. 
A woman who was a common scold might be punished by 
being ducked in a stream or pond, or by having a split stick 
fastened on her tongue or a gag in her mouth. In some 
cases the offender was made to stand on a stool in the 
church with the name of his crime written on a paper which 
was pinned on his breast. 

Town Meetings. — The people, as we have before said, 
made their own laws. To do this they met in town meet- 
ing and talked over public affairs. If a vote had to be 
taken, corn and beans were used to vote with. A o-rain of 
corn meant a vote in favor of the measure ; a bean was a 
vote against it. The town meetings were intended only to 
discuss local affairs ; those of the whole colony were settled 
by the governor and assembly. 



60 



^A^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



Church-Going. — In religious matters the Puritans were 
very strict. Everybody was expected to attend church, and 
those who failed to do so were punished. On Sunday morn- 
ing the sound of a drum, or perhaps the blo\^^ng of a horn 
or ringing of a bell, would call the people to worship. The 
meeting-house was like a small fort, as it had a fence of 
strong stakes driven into the ground around it. Often a 




PURITANS GOING TO CHUKi H. 



cannon or two would be placed near the church, or perhaps 
on its roof, while the men walked to church with their guns 
over their shoulders, and kept them within easy reach 
during the service. 

It was fear of the Indians that made them so cautious. 
No one knew at what moment the dreadful war-whoop 



THE UNITED STATES. gX 

might sound, and a troop of blood-thirsty savages rush into 
the town. If so, the mectiug-house could be turned at once 
into a fort, and the men light there for the lives of them- 
selves and their families. 

■Within the Church. — The worshippers did not sit together 
as now, but the old people occupied one part of the church, 
the young men another, and the young women another. The 
boys sat on the steps of the pulpit and in the gallery, ^o 
one was allowed to go to sleep in those old Puritan 
churches. The constable was always on hand to keep them 
awake. He carried a staff with the foot of a hare on one 
end and a hare's tail on the other. If a woman went to 
sleep, the hare's tail was brushed gently over her face ; but 
if a boy was caught nodding, the hare's foot came down on 
his pate with a sharp rap. Yet it must have been hard to 
keep awake, for the sermons were sometimes three or four 
hours long, and no doubt often very dry and tiresome. 

Industries. — The people of ITew England lived on what 
they could raise from the soil. But there were some things 
manufactured, such as hats, paper, shoes, farniture, and 
farming tools. Most people dressed in homespun goods, 
and the spinning-wheel was kept busy in the houses. Money 
was scarce, and for a while bullets were used for farthings. 
They also used the wampum of the Indians and beaver 
skins and corn for money ; but they began to make silver 
coins in 1652. 

Many vessels were built. The first of these built in 
Massachusetts was called The Blessing of the Bay. In 
time the New England people had a large trade along the 
coast, and sent vessels for whales into the icy seas of the 
north. 

Military Customs. — Every man and boy past the age of 
sixteen had to act as a soldier, and they were obliged to 



62 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

meet together and go through military exercises at certain 
periods. The danger from the Indians was so great that 
this was necessary, and in the frontier settlements no farmer 
went into his field, or travelled along the road, without his 
musket. The houses were built like forts. 

Some of the soldiers carried long pikes. Others carried 
guns called matchlocks. These guns were fired with a 
slow-match, or a piece of substance that burns very slowly. 
It was long afterwards when they began to use a piece of 
flint and steel to make a spark and set fire to the powder in 
the gun, and still later before the gun-caps which are now 
used were invented. Each soldier carried a rest, or iron 
fork, which he stuck into the ground to rest the end of his 
heavy musket on while he took aim. Swords also were 
used, and some of the soldiers wore iron helmets and breast- 
plates. Others wore coats quilted with cotton wool, through 
which an Indian arrow could not pass. Such were the 
soldiers of old Puritan days. 

The usual mode of travel was on foot or horseback, but 
many went in vessels along the coast. That is the way 
Benjamin Franklin came from Boston to ISTew York, as he 
tells us in his own story of his life. From New York to 
Philadelphia he came part of the way by land and part 
by boat on the Delaware River, and found it a long and 
difficult journey. E^ow one may make the same journey in 
two hours in a palace car. 

v.— NEW YORK. 

The Purposes of the Colonists. — The people who came to 
America did so for various jDurposes. The Spanish came in 
search of gold and silver. The French of Canada wished 
to trade with the Indians. The English of Virginia at first 



THE UNITED STATES. 63 

sought for gold, and soon after began to cultivate tobacco 
and send it to England. The Puritans were the first who 
began to till the soil as a business, and who had no other 
objects in view. They were the first, also, who made the 
New World truly their home, and took care of themselves 
without any help from Europe. 

The Dutch. — Other people had come to America to trade 
with the Indians. These were from Holland. After Henry 
Hudson got back to Europe and told of the great river he 
had sailed up in the Half Moon, the Dutch claimed all the 
territory he had visited, and called it "New Netherlands." 
A Dutch sailor named Adrian Block came there in 1614, 
and loaded his ship with bear skins. But when he was just 
ready to set sail for home his ship, which was called the 
Tiger, was found to be on fire. It could not be saved, 
so the sailors had to hurry ashore and leave their vessel to 
the flames. 

They built themselves log huts, and spent the winter on 
Manhattan Island, where the great city of New York now 
stands. They called the place New Amsterdam. In the 
spring they built a vessel called the Onrust, or Unrest, and 
sailed back to Holland. 

The Land Purchased. — After this the Dutch kept on 
coming, and they formed trading posts at different places 
along the Hudson River. They were the first settlers who 
acted as if they believed that the Indians had a right to the 
lands they lived on, and who were willing to pay for them. 
But they did not pay a very high price. They bought the 
whole of Manhattan Island for goods worth about twenty- 
four dollars. Other tracts of land were bought, and they 
kept up a thriving trade with the Indians for the skins of 
bears, beavers, and other animals, which the Indians had 
shot or caught in their traps. 



64 -AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

The Claim to Connecticut. — Some Dutch ships also went 
up the Connecticut River. They built a fort near its mouth, 
and said that they owned the whole coast as far north as 
Cape Cod. They were not there long before an English 
vessel came sailing down from Plymouth. The Dutch told 
them that they would fire on them from the fort if they 
tried to go up the river ; but the Plymouth men were not 
easily frightened, and they sailed past the fort in spite of its 
guns, and built a trading house at a place they called Wind- 
sor. This was in 1633. Other English settlers came to the 
Connecticut River by land from Massachusetts Bay, and 
some came over from England and settled at a place which 
they called New Haven. The Dutch talked of dri\'ing them 
out, but the English were too strong, so the Dutch soon had 
to leave Connecticut, and it became an English colony. 

The Swedes. — Another Dutch vessel, under Captain Mey, 
sailed into Delaware Bay and River. He took a look at the 
fine country on both sides, and declared that all this land 
belonged to Holland. A fort was built on the Delaware 
River, but it was soon allowed to go to ruin, and the Dutch 
did not act as if they wanted the country. 

About twenty years afterwards a colony came from Sweden, 
led by Peter Minuit, a former Dutch governor of New York, 
now in the service of Sweden, and settled on the banks of 
Delaware Bay and River. Now the Dutch suddenly found 
out that they wanted the country very badly. They said 
that the Swedes had settled on their lands, and sent ships 
and soldiers who attacked them and took their forts from 
them. The Swedes were not driven away, but they had to 
accept the Dutch as their masters. 

The Duke of Tork. — The Dutch had some troubles ^vith 
the Indians, but no very serious ones, and they soon formed 
many settlements along the Hudson River. Yet the people 



THE UNITED STATES. 65 

were not satisfied, for some of their governors acted like 
tyrants, and tliey thought they ought to have the right to 
govern themselves like the people of New England. It was 
not long before there was a change in their government. 
The English said that the country was theirs, and that the 
Dutch had no right to it. In 1664 the Duke of York sent 
three armed ships over from England, and the Dutch gov- 
ernor was ordered to give up the country to them. He 
wanted to fight, but the people would not help him. They 
did not like the way he had treated them, and thought they 
would be better oft' under the English. So the island was 
given up to the English, and the name of the town changed 
to New York. This was the beginning of the great city of 
that name. 

Leisler's Revolt. — There is not much more to tell about 
the colony of New York. The people did not find the 
English rule any easier than the Dutch. The governors 
sent out by the Duke of York were very severe. The peo- 
ple at last rose against one of these governors and drove 
him away, and chose a merchant named Jacob Leisler to 
take his place. But a new governor was sent over from 
England, who arrested Leisler for treason. The governor, 
who was named Sloughter, did not want to do anything 
more to Leisler, who had not been much to blame ; but he 
had the fault of drinking, and some of Leisler's enemies 
got him to sign the death-warrant while he was drunk. 
They took care to hang Leisler before the governor got 
sober again. There was never any stronger proof than this 
of the folly and crime of intemperance. 

Other governors came afterwards who were no better than 
Sloughter. One of them was said to be a partner of the 
pirates, of whom there were many on the coast. A vessel 
was sent against them, commanded by Captain Kidd; but 

5 



66 A^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

he ran away with the vessel and turned pirate himself. He 
was afterwards taken and hanged. 

The Negro Plot. — At this period there were many negro 
slaves in New York. In time one-fifth of all the inhab- 
itants were slaves. The people grew afraid of them, and 
passed severe laws to keep them in subjection. At length, 
in 1741, the story was started that the negroes had formed 
a plot to murder their masters. This caused great fear 
among the ISTew Yorkers, and many of the negroes were 
arrested. Some of these were hung, others were burned 
at the stake, and others transported. Some white men were 
hung also. 

It is very doubtful if there was any real plot. The people 
were so frightened that they hardly knew what they were 
doing, and there is no doubt that many innocent persona 
were put to death. Fear makes men do many cruel and 
unjust things. 

VI.— LIFE IN NEW YORK. 

Dutch Houses. — The Dutch settlers of New York had 
modes of life very different from those of New England and 
the South. They built houses like those of Holland. These 
were of wood, or of small black and yellow bricks, and had 
their gable ends facing the street. There were weather- 
cocks on the roofs, and the houses had many doors and win- 
dows, with a great brass knocker on the front door. They 
were kept very clean, as houses are in Holland. The women 
spent much time in sweeping and scrubbing. They had no 
carpets, but they covered the floors with white sand, which 
was made into lines and patterns with the broom. 

They had great open fireplaces, with tiles of different 
colors and figures. The furniture was plain and solid, and 
there was much old silver and china in the cupboards. Every 



THE UNITED STATES. 



67 



house had its spinning-wheels and a great chest full of linen 
which the women had woven. 

Modes of Life. — The Dutch did not work very hard. 
They took life easy, and spent much of their time sitting on 
their porches with long pipes in their mouths. They liked 
good eating and drinking, and enjoyed telling stories and 




DLT( n INTLRIOR. 



playing at various games. Many 

things and habits we now lia\e 

came from the Dutch. Our 

" Santa Glaus" came from them, 

and also the custom of New 

Year \asits, and of colored eggs 

at Easter. The Dutch cooks of 

New Amsterdam were the first to make doughnuts and 

crullers in this country. 

The people were not very fond of church-going, but they 
had great respect for their ministers, or " dominies," as they 
called them. AVlien money was scarce they paid the domi- 
nies in beaver skins or wampum. 



gg AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

The Dutch Dress. — The Hollanders had their own ideas 
about dress. The men wore several pairs of knee-breeches, 
one over the other, which gave them a very baggy look. 
They wore large buckles at the knees and on the shoes, 
while their coats had great buttons of brass or silver. The 
women wore a great many short and bright-colored petti- 
coats, with stockings of various colors and high-heeled 
shoes. On their heads they wore white muslin caps. 

Industries. — There were people of several different nations 
in ISTew York, but Dutch was the ordinary language, even 
long after the country had been taken by the English. 
Most of the people were engaged in trading with the Indians 
for furs, which they sent to Europe, along with timber, tar, 
tobacco, and other things. They built their own vessels, 
and gave them such queer names as King Solomon and 
The Angel Gabriel. 

The Patroons. — The country was settled in a way unlike 
that of any other colony. Rich persons came from Holland, 
where they had bought the right to take up in America a 
tract of land running sixteen miles along a stream and as 
far back into the country as they pleased. They w^ere told 
that they must pay the Indians for the land, and bring out 
a colony of fifty persons within four years. 

These great land-owners were called " Patroons." They 
owned all the l)est lands, and the farmers were only tenants. 
Thus New York was very different from New England, 
which was divided into small farms owned by the farmers. 
The patroon system was not changed by the English, and 
many of these great estates continued until recent times. 
The rents were low, but about 1844 many of the tenants 
refused to pay rent any longer. After some trouble most 
of the farmers bought their lands, and the great estates of 
the patroons were broken up. 



THE UNITED STATES. 69 

VII.— MAEYLAND. 

Lord Baltimore. — The Catholics of England were treated 
as badly as the Puritans, and when they saw how well the 
Puritans got along in America, they thought that if they 
should cross the ocean they might be able to live like them 
in peace and comfort. So a Catholic nobleman, named 
Lord Baltimore, got King Charles I. to give him a charter 
for a colony. The land he chose was on Chesapeake Bay, 
where a settlement was made in 1634 at a place called St, 
Mary's. The country was named Maryland, after the wife 
of the king, Charles I., whose name was Henrietta Maria. 

The charter which the king gave to Lord Baltimore was 
a very liberal one. He was to govern the country in his own 
way, without any interference from England, and the king 
promised not to tax the colony if the governor would send 
him one-fifth of any gold or silver he might find and two 
Indian arrows every year as a sort of tribute. 

Religious Liberty. — Lord Baltimore was a wise and just 
man, and he declared that no one should suffer in his colony 
on account of religion. Most of the first settlers were 
Roman Catholics, but he said that all Christian people should 
have the same rights as the Catholics in Maryland. So for 
a time there were no religious disputes in that colony, 
though it was not long before other troubles began. 

Clayborne's Rebellion. — Many persons came from Vir- 
ginia and settled in Maryland, and these did not get along 
well \vith the Catholics. Some of them had been there 
before Lord Baltimore, and they claimed to own a part of 
the country-. Disputes began, and before many years there 
was war in the colony. A man named Clayborne was at the 
head of the Virginians, and after some fighting he drove 
out the governor and took possession of the country. But 



70 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

the fighting began once more, and in the end he was defeated 
and had to flee for his life. So Lord Baltimore got possession 
of his colony again. 

Religious Troubles. — But other Protestants kept coming 
into the country, who were not willing to live in peace with 
the Catholics, even under their fair laws. Quarrels arose, 
and when the Protestants became strong enough they passed 
a law that no Catholic should have a vote. In this way re- 
ligious freedom came to an end in Maryland. 

In 1691 the King of England took the province away from 
Lord Baltimore and placed it under a royal governor. He 
declared that the Church of England should be the church 
of the colony, and the people were no longer allowed to 
worship in their own way. For twenty years this state of 
affairs continued. Then the king gave the colony bactc 
again to a descendant of Lord Baltimore, who was a Protes- 
tant. After that time no one was persecuted on account of 
his religion. 

Most of the people of Maryland lived on plantations and 
raised tobacco as they did in Virginia. They paid for every- 
thing they wanted w^ith this plant, which served them instead 
of money. Lord Baltimore had bought the land from the 
Indians, and the people had very little trouble with them. 
After the religious disputes were settled, Maryland became 
a happy and prosperous colony, and affairs went on well 
there for many years. 

VIIT.— PENNSYLVANIA. 

Religious Persecution. — We have seen that it was religious 
persecution that made many of the people of Europe come 
to America. It was this that brought the French Protestants 
to Florida, the Puritans to New England, and the Catholics 
to Maryland. The same cause sent another colony over the 



THE UNITED STATES. 71 

ocean. In those days each of the great nations of Europe 
had one religion which it said was the only true one, and 
they declared that any person who had a ditierent belief was 
a bad man, and should be punished. 

The Quakers. — There were many of these " heretics," as 
they called them, in England. One sect of them had the 
name of Quakers. They did not believe in war, nor in fine 
clothes, nor that one man is better than another. They 
would not take oflt" their hats before a king. They had no 
fine churches and no paid ministers, and their ideas were 
so different from those of the Church of England that the 
government tried to make them change their belief. 

Many of them were thrown into prison, and they were 
treated so cruelly in other ways that some of them came 
across the ocean to Massachusetts. They thought that they 
might worship God in their own way among the Puritans, but 
they soon found out their mistake. We have told already 
how badly the Puritans treated them. 

■William Penn. — Among the Quakers was one rich and 
educated man, named William Penn. His father had been 
an admiral in the English navy, and when he died Charles 
II. owed him a large sum of money. William Penn had 
been in prison for being a Quaker, and he thought that he 
would like to make a home for himself and his friends 
where they could live in peace. So he asked King Charles 
to give him some hind in America for the money he owed 
him. 

The king was glad to do this, for he had more land than 
money. He told Penn that he might have the land on the 
west of the Delaware River. This had belonged first to the 
Indians, then to the Swedes, and afterwards to the Dutch, 
but when the English took New Amsterdam fi'om the Dutch 
they took this also. It was covered with forests, and Penn 



72 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 




WILLIAM PENN. 



wished to call it Sylvania, from the Latin word Sylva, which 

means forest. But the king said it should be called Penn- 
sylvania, or Penn's forest-land. 

Philadelphia. — William Penn 
came to America in the year 
1682, in the ship Welcome. 
There were Swedes and Dutch 
in his new province before him, as 
we know, and also some English, 
whom he had sent out the year 
before. Several of the Swedes 
lived where the great city of Phila- 
delphia now stands; but Penn 

bought the ground from them, and laid out a city, which 

he called Philadelphia, or " brotherly love." 

He soon asked the Indians to meet him and have a friendly 

talk. Many of the chiefs 

came, and they met to- 
gether under a great elm- 
tree, on the banks of the 

Delaware. The white 

men had no guns, and 

they gave presents to the 

Indians and promised to 

buy the land from them, 

instead of cheating and 

shooting them as had 

been done elsewhere. So 

the Indians were glad to 

see them, and said that 

they would live " in love 

vdth the children of William Penn while the sun and moon 

shall shine." 




PENN TREATY Mu.NUMKNf. 



THE UNITED STATES. 73 

This promise was kept for many years. The Quake.rs 
were a peaceful and just people, who never did any harm to 
the savages, and the Indians always looked on them as their 
friends. All the troubles wdth the red men in Pennsylvania 
came from other people. 

The Laws. — William Penn stayed only two years in 
America, and then went back to England, where he re- 
mained for many years Instead of trying to govern the peo- 
ple, he called them together and let them make their own laws, 
and the colony at once became free and happy. Every man 
who paid a tax had a right to vote, no matter what religious 
belief he had, and the people continued to choose their own 
officers and make their own laws. Nearly the only power 
which William Penn kept was that of appointing the governor. 

The Population. — People came over very fast to the 
Quaker settlement. Some of those who came first lived in 
holes dug in the river bank ; but houses were soon built, and 
in two years Philadelphia had three hundred houses and 
twenty-five hundred inhabitants. Penn did not come back 
until 1699, at which time there were seven hundred houses. 
The city was very prosperous, but Penn did not get much 
money from his colony. The people forgot how much they 
owed to him, and let him die poor after all he had done to 
make them rich and happy. 

Delaware. — And now we must say something about the 
pro\inces of Delaware and 'Rew Jersey. One of the early 
governors of Virginia, named Lord de la Ware, had made 
a voyage along the coast, and entered a beautiful river, 
which was called Delaware after his name. Then the Swedes 
and the Dutch came, and afterwards the English, and the 
country which is now called Delaware was for a time part' 
of Pennsylvania. In 1703 it was made a separate colony, 
under its present name; 



74 '-^N ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

New Jersey. — The Dutch ^vere the first to settle in New 
Jersey. But when the Duke of York rohbed the Dutch of 
their settlements, he gave this province to two English 
noblemen, who named it after the island of Jersey, in the 
English Channel. 

Among the people who came there were some Quakers, 
and William Penn soon bought part of the land and invited 
others to come. Afterwards the rest of the province was 
bought by the Quakers, and it was thrown open to the per- 
secuted people of all religion*!. 

But in 1702 a royal governor was appointed who ruled 
over New York and New Jersey. It was not till 1738 that 
New Jersey got a governor of its own. But the lands 
settled by the Quakers long continued among the most 
peaceful, freest, and happiest of all the settlements in 
America. 

IX.— LIFE IN PENNSYLVANIA. 

The People of Pennsylvania. — Pennsylvania was settled 
by people of ditierent nations, and several languages were 
spoken. Among these settlers were English and Swedes, 
Dutch and Germans, Scotch and Irish. There were no im- 
portant towns besides Philadelphia, but that was the greatest 
city in America till after the Revolution. 

Philadelphia. — William Penn laid out his city with streets 
crossing each other at right angles, like those of ancient 
Babylon. It had many handsome buildings, the streets were 
lined M'ith trees, and there were gardens and orchards about 
the houses, so that it was a " fair greene country town," as 
Penn wished it to be. The sidewalks were paved with flag- 
stones, which at that time could be found in few cities. In 
1740 the city had about twelve thousand inhabitants, and 
was a very thriving place. 



THE UNITED STATES. 



75 



Modes of Life. — ^Philadelphia was noted for the abundance 
of its fruit. A German traveller said, in 1748, that the 
peaches were so plentiful that the people fed their pigs on 
them. The people in Europe, he said, cared more for their 
turnips than the people in Philadelphia did for their finest 
fruits. 

The shops of the city were only the ordinary houses, with 




OLDEST HOUSE IN GERMANTOWN. 



something hung over the door to show what was for sale in- 
side. Now you would see a basket, now a beehive, or per- 
haps a wooden anchor, or something else to serve as a sign. 
The people were very quiet and sober, and did not care much 
for amusements. There was not much travelling about the 
country, for the roads were very bad. 



76 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



Dealings -with the Indians. — While William Penn lived 
his colony had no trouble with the Indians. It is said that 
no drop of Quaker blood was ever shed by an Indian. This 
is not quite true, yet they were long the best of friends. But 
some of William Penn's successors treated the Indians 
badly, and made them very angry. The Indians had sold 
some men as much land as a man could walk over in a day 
and a half. They supposed that this land would be walked 
over in the usual way ; but instead of that a smooth w^alk 
was laid out and some fast walkers trained, who went over a 
very long distance in the day and a half. The Indians said 
that this was not fair. But the white men brought Indians 
from New York who were enemies of the tribe of the Dela- 
wares, and who drove them from their lands. This was 
not the way that William Penn would have acted, and the 
Indians never again felt as they had done towards the 
white men. 

Benjamin Franklin. — In 1723 there came to Philadelphia 
a very remarkable man. This was the celebrated Benjamin 
Franklin, who was born in Boston, 
but came to Philadelphia while he 
was young. His brother had printed 
a newspaper in Boston, and Franklin 
soon started one in Philadelphia, 
which became one of the best in the 
country. He did many other things. 
He kept a stationer's shop ; he bound 
books ; he made ink ; he sold rags, 
soap, and coffee. He was not 
ashamed to do anything honest, and 
would wheel the papers he sold along the streets in a wheel- 
barrow, which many poorer and less worthy men were too 
proud to do. He was probably the wisest man of the period 




BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. 



THE UNITED STATES. 77 

in which he lived. "While he was working he was always 
studying, and it was he who proved that lightning is the 
same thing as electricity. He brought the lightning down 
from the clouds along the string of a kite, and got an 
electric shock from it. Franklin did much for the progress 
of Philadelphia. He started a university, a hospital, a 




franklin's gravk. 

library, and other public institutions. He did as much for 
the good of the whole country. 'No man did more to help 
America to become free from England, and he was one of 
those who prepared the Constitution of the United States, that 
great document which first made a nation of this country. 
Franklin was one of the noblest men the \\'orld has ever 
known, and America will never cease to be proud of him. 



78 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

X.— THE CAKOLINAS. 

The Proprietors. — We have seen how freely King Charles 
n. gave away land in America. lie gave New York to 
one person and Pennsylvania to anotlier, while a large 
region, known as the Carolinas, was given by him to eight 
persons, most of whom were noblemen of his court, and 
none of whom had ever seen America. 

Settlers had come to Carolina before this, some from Vir- 
ginia, and others from New England and elsewhere. There 
were many there in 1663 when these noblemen became the 
owners of the land. These eight persons decided to have a 
different kind of government from that of the other colonies. 

They did not believe in freedom, and thought that the 
people were not fit to take care of themselves, as they were 
trying to do in New England. So they concluded to have 
a strong government, in which the people would have noth- 
ing to do but to obey the laws that were made for them. 

The Grand Model Government. — The proprietors went 
to a celebrated philosopher, named John Locke, and asked 
him to draw up a plan of government for them. He did so, 
and formed a plan which was called the " Grand Model." 
There were to be earls and barons in Carolina as there are 
in Europe. These were to own all the land, and to have all 
the power, and the people were to be little better than slaves. 

This plan might have done very well for the Spanish or 
French colonies, but it would not work with the English. 
The people in Carolina had come from places where the 
settlers owned the land and made the laws. They did not 
understand the Grand Model, and paid no attention to it, 
but went on in their own way, took what land they wanted, 
and did not trouble themselves about the plans of the 
proprietors. 



THE UNITED STATES. 



79 



The earls and barons stayed at home and the proprietors 
stayed with them, while the people decided for themselves 
what was best to do, and did it. Settlers came from dif- 
ferent parts of Europe, among them some French Prot- 
estants, who had the same belief as those who had come 
over a hundred years before under Jean Ribault. The 
colony soon became prosperous. 

The Pirates. — There were pirates along the coast who 
gave trouble for many years. They would conceal their 
vessels in the bays and rivers of the coast, and suddenly 




A MERCHANTMAN ATTACKED BY A PIKATE. 



sail out and attack passing ships. It is said that some of 
the settlers helped them. They sunk many vessels and 
murdered many people before they were driven away or 
captured by armed ships. 

Industries. — The rice plant was brought into the colony 
by a vessel from Madagascar. It was planted and became 
a very valuable crop in the southern part of Carolina. In 
the northern part the people made tar and turpentine out 
of the pine-trees, and hunted for bear and beaver skins. 

Later on there were wars with the Spaniards and the 
Indians. The people of Carolina sent some war vessels 
against St. Augustine, in Florida. In return the Spaniards 



80 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

stirred up the Indians to make war on the settlements. 
But in the end the Tuscarora Indians, with whom they had 
the most trouble, were driven out of the colony and forced 
to go to New York, where they joined the Iroquois, or Five 
Nations. 

Division of the Colony. — The proprietors tried to govern 
the people of the Carolinas, but the people wanted to govern 
themselves, so they drove the governor sent to them out of 
the colony, and put the secretary in prison. In the end the 
proprietors got tired of quarrelling with the people and 
asked the king to buy the province from them. 

He did so, and divided the province into two parts, which 
were called North and South Carolina. This was in 1729. 
The people chose their own law-makers, but they did not 
like the governors sent them by the king any more than 
they had done their old ones. But this did not keep 
people from coming, and the country in time grew rich 
and prosperous. 

XI.— LIFE IN VIRGINIA AND CAROLINA. 

The Settlers of Virginia. — The people who settled Vir- 
ginia were of a very different class from those of the 
Northern colonies. They did not come to the New World 
either to work, or to worship God ; nor had they any thought 
of growing rich by trading with the Indians. Most of them 
were English gentlemen, with more pride than money, who 
did not know how to work, and who hoped to get rich by 
finding mines of gold and silver, or in some other easy way. 
Afterwards criminals were sent across the ocean and sold 
lor a certain number of years to the colonists. These 
worked for the planters, though it is not likely that they 
were of much use. In time the j^lanters became the rich 
men of Virginia and these servants the poor men. 



THE UNITED STATES. 81 

Captain Smith, as we have already said, made everybody 
work, but he did not stay very long. At first, as he says, 
all the shelter they had was an awning made from an old 
sail, nailed to trees. Then they built some rough log houses, 
whose seats and tables were made of planks cut out with 
an axe. This was very different from the way people after- 
wards lived in Virginia. 

When slaves were brought over and the people began to 
raise tobacco they soon grew more comfortable. Their 
tobacco was sent to England, and goods were sent to them 
in return. For a long time tobacco was used for money. 
One pound of tobacco was worth from two to twelve cents 
of our money, which at that time could buy five or six 
times as much as that amount of money can now. 

Modes of Life. — The settlers soon began to build vessels 
for themselves, and carried on a good trade with England. 
They lived in a different way from the people of the IN^orth. 
In travelling you would find few towns or villages, but the 
land was divided up into large plantations, where tobacco 
was the principal crop. Each house stood far from any 
others, and there were a great many negro servants. The 
slaves who worked in the fields lived in a little villao;e of 
their own. Nearly everything that was used on the plan- 
tations was made by the slaves, who were taught different 
trades. There were mills to grind corn and wheat, and 
large sheds to cure tobacco. This tobacco was packed in 
great hogsheads, and sent to the coast to be loaded on 
vessels and shipped to England. They had a curious way 
of sending it to the coast. An axle was run through the 
hogshead of tobacco, and shafts fixed to it. Then horses 
or oxen would drag it over the roads, the hogshead rolling 
along like a great wheel. 

The Planters. — As time went on there came to be great 



82 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



differences in riches. There were more very rich men and 
more very poor ones than in the North. The great planters 
lived like lords. They kept packs of hunting dogs and 
many racing horses, and rode to church or town in fine 
coaches drawn by six horses, and attended by riders on 
horseback. 

Their houses were built of wood, or of brick brought 
from England. These houses were often large and grand, 
with broad stairways and mantels and wainscots of solid 
mahogany, which was richly carved. Gold and silver ware 
could be seen in abundance on the sideboards, and the fur- 




A MANOR HOLSE IN MRGINIl 



niture was rich and showy. The planters were very hos- 
pitable. Strangers were received with a warm welcome, 
and everything was done to make their ^^sits pleasant and 
agreeable. 

Government. — The planters spent much of their time 
attending to political matters. They carried on the govern- 
ment of the colony and became very aristocratic. There 
were among them men of high education and fine char- 
acter, and afterwards many of the leading statesmen of 
America came from Virginia. The governors of the colony 



THE UNITED STATES. 



83 



were sent from England, and at first the laws were made in 
that country. Afterwards the people were allowed to make 
their own laws. 

Punishments. — The early laws were very severe. Every 
man who stayed away from church was punished. At first 
the law said that a man who stayed away from church three 
times must be put to death. Afterwards the punishment 
ft)r this offence was to be made a slave fi^r a year and a day. 
There were severe laws against swearing and scolding. 




AN EPISCOPAL CHUKCH IN VIRGINIA. 



Both men and women might be whipped in public, or placed 
in the stocks. Or they might be made to stand in church 
vnih. white sheets over them, or with the name of their 
crime pinned on their breasts. Such laws as these, how- 
ever, did not last long, and were not often carried out. 
Beligious Persecution. — The Church of England was the 



84 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

established churcli of Virginia, and members of other 
churches were treated with much severity. The laws for- 
bade Quakers and Catholics to come into the colony. All 
those who came were punished. This made many go to 
Maryland and Carolina, where religion was free. And 
thus the severe laws of Virginia helped to till up these other 
colonies. 

Education. — In 1671, Governor Berkeley, of Virginia, 
wrote, " I thank God there are no tree schools nor printing- 
presses here, and I hope we shall not have them these 
hundred years." Another governor taxed school-masters 
twenty shillings each. So education did not make much 
progress, and there was no newspaper in Virginia till 1736. 
But William and Mary College, of Virginia, was the second 
in the country, Harvard College, of Massachusetts, being the 
first. 

North Carolina. — The mode of life all through the South 
was much the same as in Virginia. In many places the land 
was divided into great plantations, worked by slaves, while 
the country was not so thickly settled as in the North. In 
North Carolina there were diiferent modes of life. Here 
great pine woods lay all along the coast, and the people 
made tar and turpentine from the trees. Farther back the 
country was more open, and farms were cultivated, while 
many persons spent their time in hunting. The settlers 
lived far apart, and the only roads they had through the 
woods were paths, with notches cut on the trees to guide 
travellers. This they called " blazing their way." 

South Carolina. — South Carolina was much more like 
Virginia. Here great plantations were formed, but rice was 
raised instead of tobacco. Afterwards indigo was culti- 
vated. The planters of South (^arolina grew very rich from 
rice and indigo. Farther back, near the mountains, the 



THE UNITED STATES. g5 

people were poor, the land was divided into small farms, 
and there were many hunters. 

Education. — There were few schools except in Charleston, 
but the rich planters sent their sons to England to be edu- 
cated. The Church of England became the established 
church of the colony, but there were no severe laws against 
people of other beliefs, as in Virginia. The difference in 
the crops and in the climate had much to do with the differ- 
ence in mode of life of the Southern and Northern colonies. 

XII.— GEOKGIA. 

Tyranny in Europe. — It is interesting to find that nearly 
all the English colonies in America were formed as places of 
refuge for the poor and ill-treated people of Europe. In 
our happy days and our free country it is hard for us to 
understand the way men lived and acted in Europe a few 
hundred years ago. People not only could not do as they 
wished to do, but were not even allowed to think as they 
wished to think. To-day there are many different ideas 
about God and heaven and religious matters, but then the 
governments tried to make everybody think the same way 
about these matters. This they could not do. People never 
can be made to think the same way about anything. Then 
the governments tried to force them to do so by ill treatment, 
and thousands of men and women came to America to get 
away from those who oppressed them. 

We have told the story of a number of colonies that were 
formed in this way. There is one more to speak of, the 
colony of Georgia. This was formed by an Englishman 
named Oglethorpe, one of those warm-hearted men who 
spend their lives in trying to do good to their fellow-men. 

The English Prisons. — In those days persons in England 
who failed in business, and could not ay their debts, were 



86 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



put in prison, where they were often kept for many years. 
The prisons of old times were filthy dens, where the prison- 
ers were crowded together and treated with great cruelty, 
and many of them died of want and disease. It was these 
poor debtors whom Oglethorpe wished to help ; hut he said 
that all who were poor and unfortunate, and all who were 
ill treated on account of their religion, might have a home 
in his colony. 

The Settlement of Georgia. — The king, George II., gave 
him a charter to the land tliat lay between Carolina and 
Florida, which he called Georgia after 
the king's name. He brought over a 
number of the poor debtors, whom the 
king set free at his desire. They made 
a settlement where the city of Savan- 
nah now stands. For a whole year 
Oglethorpe lived in a tent, set up under 
four pine-trees. The king had given 
him the land; but, like William Penn 
and some others, he thought that the In- 
dians had the best right to it, so he paid 
them for it. After that they were always friendly to liim. 

People came to Georgia from all parts of Europe. These 
were the poor of Europe, who hoped to live in comfort in 
America. Among them were many Moravians from Austria, 
— ^people who had been persecuted on account of their re- 
ligion. Oglethorpe would not let any slaves be brought into 
Georgia. He also would not let any person bring rum into 
the colony. He looked on slavery and intemperance as two 
great evils. 

The Colony Prospers. — Houses were built, and a fort was 
erected to defend the colonists, while the land was divided 
up into farms and given to the settlers. Savannah soon 




OGLETHOnPE. 



THE UNITED STATES. 87 

became a town of considerable size and importance. The 
people were on good terms with the Indians, and all went 
well with them, l^o colony in America ever began with 
better prospects. But they were soon to have their share 
of trouble. 

The Claims of Spain. — The country which the King of 
England had given to Oglethorpe was part of that which 
Spain claimed under the name of Florida. It was the same 
region which IS'arvaez and De Soto had travelled over two 
hundred years before. So if discovery gave any rights it 
belonged to Spain rather than to England. But the Spanish 
had not settled it, and the English had, and they were not 
likely to give it up to please Spain. Those who had posses- 
sion did not trouble themselves much about an old claim on 
paper. 

War with Florida. — The Spaniards grew angry on finding 
the English coming into a country which they said was 
theirs. After some years war broke out between England 
and Spain, and then the people of the colonies began the 
cruel work of trying to kill one another. Oglethorpe got 
together an army of one thousand white men and many 
Indians, and marched into Florida to take the Spanish city 
of St. Augustine. But he did not succeed and had to march 
back again, with his men very much the worse for their 
journey. This was in 1740. 

Two years afterwards the Spaniards tried to take Georgia 
from the English. They sailed northward with three thou- 
sand men and a great many vessels, and landed on St. Simon's 
Island. Oglethorpe met them with a much smaller force, 
but after some fighting the Spanish were taken with a panic 
of terror and ran for their ships. They sailed away in all 
haste and the colony was saved. Many years passed before 
Georgia had any more troubles from war. 



88 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

After the War. — Some time after this Oglethorpe went 
back to England. The people were not satisfied with the 
laws, some of which were severe and vexatious, and they 
made so many complaints that in time the charter was given 
back to the king, and Georgia became a royal province. 
Oglethorpe never returned to America. He lived to be a 
very old man, and was one of the best men who had any- 
thing to do with the settlement of America. 

The Laws. — One of the laws of which the people com- 
plained stated that no man should own a farm beyond a 
fixed size. Another stated that no woman should have land 
left to her by will. Every man who held land was bound 
to serve as a soldier when called upon, and this was why 
women were not allowed to own it. Everybody was to have 
the rights of an Englishman, and all religions were free 
except the Roman Catholic. 

Industries of the Colony. — The people soon said that they 
could not work their lands in so warm a climate without 
slaves, so after seven years the planters were allowed to have 
them. And rum, which Oglethorpe had forbidden, soon 
made its way into the colony. The people cleared the 
forests and tilled the land vn\h the help of their slaves, and 
after a while much silk was made in the colony. Silk-worms 
had been sent from England, with people who understood 
silk mal-dng, and this business was kept up until the time of 
the Revolution. General Oglethorpe took some of the first 
silk that was produced to England, and a silk dress was made 
of it for the queen. 

Visitors. — Among the people of Georgia was a settlement 
of the Highlanders of Scotland, and whenever Oglethorpe 
visited them he wore the Highland dress, which gave them 
great pleasure. Soon after Georgia was settled some cele- 
brated English preachers came there. These were John and 



THE UNITED STATES. 



89 



Charles Wesley, the men who started the Methodist doctrine 
in England. George Whitefield, another celebrated Meth- 
odist preacher, also came over. From the money which he 
received for his preaching he founded an " Orphan House" 
in Savannah. 

Dealings with the Indians. — As we have said, Oglethorpe, 
like "William Penn in Pennsylvania, Lord Baltimore in 
Maryland, and the Dutch in New York, paid the Indians 




OGLETHORPE AND THE CHIEFS. 



for their land. In consequence these colonies had much 
less trouble with the Indians than those which took the 
land without paying for it. 

The Indians of Georgia were called Creeks, because there 
were so many creeks, or small streams, in their country. 
They formed a league of several tribes, and were more 
civilized than the Indians of the North. 



90 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Some of the chiefs gave Oglethorpe a buffalo skin, on the 
inside of which was a i)ainting of the head and feathers of 
an eagle. They said to him, " The feathers of the eagle are 
soft, which signifies love; the skin is warm, and is the 
emblem of protection ; therefore love and protect our little 
families." 

And they lived up to this saying. All the trouble the 
Georgia people had with the Indians was with those of 
Florida, whom the Spanish stirred up against them. 

XIII.— CONDITION OP THE COLONIES. 

The English Colonies. — We have now told the story of 
the forming of the English colonies from New Hampshire 
to Georgia. Maine at that time was part of Massachusetts, 
and New Hampshire was the most northerly colony. The 
whole coast land between the French province of Canada 
and the Spanish province of Florida was occupied by Eng- 
lish settlements. 

Each of the English colonies claimed the country from 
the settlements on the coast all the way to the Pacific Ocean. 
But the French had a claim to the back country also, and 
it took some hard fighting later on to decide who should 
own it. 

Growth of the Colonies. — The colonies grew very rapidly. 
In less than one hundred and fifty years after the first settle- 
ment was made there were a million and a quarter people 
in the country. These were divided nearly equally between 
the ISTew England, the Middle, and the Southern colonies. 
The South had more than the others, but not more white 
people. 

Industries. — The people of the colonies were very indus- 
trious. They raised tobacco, rice, indigo, grain, and other 
crops, much of which was sent to England to pay for manu- 



THE UNITED STATES. 



91 



factured goods. Rice served for money in South Carolina, 
as tobacco did in Virginia. The colonies in time grew so 
rich that they were able to help the King of England, in his 
wars, with money and ships. Georgia was the poorest 
colony, and the only one to which the king ever sent any 
money to help it. 

The Colonies isolated. — At first the colonies on the coast 
were a long distance apart. Great forests spread between 
them, and it was not easy for a man to get from one to 
another except by ships. So they had not much to do with 




T.E.LuMM.? • ««^ 



AN OLD RESIDENCE. 



The New England col- 



one another. 

onies were the only ones that were 
close together, and whose people could 
easily get from one to another. Thus each of them had a 
history of its own as much as if it were a separate country. 
Growing- together. — But the country between them in 
time filled up with people, the woods were cut down, and 
farms were laid out all alono; the coast and some distance 



92 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

into the interior. By 1750 the settlements had grown to- 
gether so that men might travel by land along the whole 
coast and iind white men at short distances apart. America 
was now becoming one country, instead of a number of 
separate colonies. 

Land Travelling. — But a land journey in America then 
was not an easy task. It was not till long afterwards that 
railroads and steamboats came into use. The roads were 
bad, and many of the streams had no bridges, or very poor 
ones, so it was not easy or pleasant to travel on horseback 
or by carriage. There were stage-lines in some places, but 
the stages moved very slowly. Much of the travel continued 
to be by vessels along the coast. 

Difference in Customs. — The people of New England 
were settled more closely than those of the South. Their 
land was broken up into small farms, and more manufactured 
goods were made. In the South there was more land, and 
it was divided into large plantations, so that the people lived 
at a distance apart, and there was less social intercourse 
than in the l^orth. Negro slaves were kept in the whole 
country, but there were more of them in the South than in 
the North, for the great plantations in the South could not 
1)6 worked without them, while there was much less use for 
them on the smaller farms of the North. The warm climate 
of the South also was better suited to them. 

Government. — Each of the colonies had a legislature, or 
law-making body, of its own, but only New England elected 
its own governors. Elsewhere the governors were ap[>ointed 
])y the proprietors or the king, and the people had less to do 
with public afiairs. 

Restrictive Laws. — England wanted to keep all the trade 
of the colonics for itself. The people were forbidden to 
send their vessels and goods to any other country than Eng- 



THE UNITED STATES. 93 

land, or to let the ships of any other country come into 
their ports. And the English wanted to manufacture their 
goods for them also, and to keep the people of America at 
farming. They forbade them to make iron, paper, hats, 
leather, and other things. 

These laws were not well carried out. The people often 
disobeyed them. In after years England tried to enforce 
them, and the people grew angry and rebellious. This was 
one of the things that led to the Revolution. 



PART II.-QUESTIONS FOR EXAMINATION. 

I. Name the two companies formed to make settlements in America. When 
did tliey send out colonies ? Where did the Southern colony settle ? How 
did the colonists act ? How did Captain John Smith make them work ? How 
did he save his life among the Indians ? What did Pocahontas do ? What 
became of Smith? Describe "the starving time.'' What plant did the 
colonists begin to raise ? When were slaves first brought to America? How 
did the colonists get wives ? Describe the Indian massacre. What caused 
Bacon's rebellion? AVhat followed it? 

II. Why did the Pilgrims leave England ? Holland ? Why did they de- 
cide to go to America ? What was the name of their vessel ? Where did 
they land, and when? Why were they called Pilgrims? How did they 
act? Who was Captain Miles Standish ? What did Canonicus, the Indian 
chief, do ? How were the Indians frightened ? What new settlement was 
made ? What were these colonists called ? What was done with the charter? 
What kind of government was established ? What other colonies were 
formed ? How came Roger Williams to found Rhode Island ? How were 
religious opinions treated there ? How did the Quakers act in Massachusetts ? 
How did the Puritans treat them ? What is meant by witchcraft ? Describe 
the Salem witchcraft. How many were hanged as witches ? What advance 
was made in government ? What did Charles II. do about the charters ? 
What did James II. do ? Tell what was done about the Connecticut charter. 
How did the people get rid of royal governors ? 

III. How did the English treat the Indians? What did the Pequots do? 
Describe the attack on the Pequot fort. What effect had this on the Indians ? 
Who was King Philip? What did the Indians do under his influence? 
Describe the attack on the Narragansetts. When and how was Philip killed ? 



94 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

What were the results of the war? Why did the French stir up the Indians 
to attaciv the English? What was the result? Who was Mrs. Dustin ? 
How did she escape from the Indians ? What was done at Schenectady and 
Deerfield ? How did the people protect themselves from the Indians ? 

IV. What were the houses of the Puritans like ? How were they arranged 
and furnished ? How was the sun made to tell the time of day ? How did 
the Puritans dress ? What titles were used ? What did they have for food ? 
What were their ideas about amusements ? What punishments did they 
inflict? How were votes taken at the town meetings? What were their 
rules about church-going ? How were the churches protected ? Why was 
this done ? How did the people sit within the church ? How did the con- 
stable keep them awake? What industries had the Puritans? What did 
they use for money ? AVhat were their vessels used for ? Who had to act as 
soldiers ? How were the soldiers armed ? What was the mode of travel ? 
How did Benjamin Franklin come to Philadelphia? 

V. For what purposes did people come to America ? AVhat region did the 
Dutch claim ? How came Adrian Block to spend the winter on Manhattan 
Island? AVbere did the Dutch settle? How did they act towards the In- 
dians? What did they trade for? How were they driven out of Connecti- 
cut? Who sailed up Delaware Bay? From what other country of Europe 
did a colony come to Delaware Bay ? How did the Dutch act towards the 
Swedes? What did the Duke of York do ? What name did the English give 
to the Dutch town of New Amsterdam ? How was the English rule liked ? 
Describe Leisler's revolt. AVhat proportion of the people of New York 
were slaves ? What story was started about them ? How were the slaves 
treated ? 

A^I. What kind fif houses did the Dutch build? In what condition Avere 
they kept ? How were they furnished ? Did the Dutch work hard ? AVhat 
were some of their customs ? How did they treat their ministers ? How 
were the men and women dressed? How did they employ themselves? 
What did they send to Europe ? How was the country settled ? AVhat were 
the great land-owners called ? Did the farmers own their hind? How were 
the estates of the patroons broken up ? 

VII. How were the Catholics treated in England? AVhat did Lord Balti- 
more do? AVhat did he name the land grunted him ? AVhat was he to give 
the king ? What did he declare about religion ? AVhat brought on disputes ? 
Describe Clayborne's rebellion. AVhat did the Protestants do ? What hap- 
pened after the king took control of the colony ? AVas it given back to Lord 
Baltimore again ? How did the people of Maryland live? What did they 
use as money ? 

VIII. AVhat beliefs and customs did the (Quakers have? How were they 



THE UNITED STATES. 95 

treated in England ? Who was William Penn ? How came he to ask the 
king for land in America? What land did the king give him? What name 
was given it ? What does this name mean ? When did William Penn come 
to America? What people did he find in his province? AVhat city did he 
layout? Describe Penn's treaty with the Indians. How did the Quakers 
and the Indians get on together? What power did Penn give the people? 
How fast did the city of Philadelphia grow ? How was Penn treated by the 
colonists ? After whom was the Delaware River named ? When was the 
colony of Delaware separated from Pennsylvania ? Who first settled New 
Jersey? Who bought the land ? When did New Jersey get a governor of 
its own ? 

IX. From Avhat nations came the settlers of Pennsylvania ? How was 
Philadelphia laid out ? How were the streets paved ? How many inhab- 
itants were there in 1740? What is said about fruit? How were the shops 
arranged ? What was the character of the people ? How were the Indians 
treated ? What trick was played to rob them of their land ? What cele- 
brated man came to Philadelphia in 1723 ? How did he do business? How 
did he prove that lightning and electricity are the same ? What did he do 
for Philadelphia ? What service did he perform for the whole country ? 

X. To whom did Charles II. give the province of Carolina? What ideas 
did the proprietors have about the people? Whom did they ask to draw up 
a plan of government ? What was this plan called ? How were the people 
to be governed ? How did the people act ? What class of law-breakers was 
there along the coast ? How did they act ? Where was the rice plant brought 
from ? In what part of Carolina was it raised ? What did the people do in 
the northern part? Describe the wars with the Spaniards and Indians. 
What became of the Tuscarora Indians ? What troubles took place between 
the people and the governor? What did the proprietors ask the king to do? 
How did the king divide the Carolinas? 

XI. What class of people came to Virginia? What other kind were sent 
there ? How did thej' become divided ? How did the people live at first ? 
What was used as money ? What was it worth? How did the people live 
afterwards ? What work did the slaves do on the plantations ? How were 
the tobacco hogsheads sent to the coast ? How did the great planters live in 
later years? What were their houses like? How were strangers treated? 
What was the government like? What punishments were inflicted by the 
early laws? What was the established religitm of Virginia? How did the 
government act towards other religions ? For what did a governor of Vir- 
ginia thank God? Did education make much progress? Wliich were the 
firs.t two colleges in America? How was the land divided in the South? 
What did the people of North Carolina produce ? How did they make their 



96 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

way through tho woods? "What was South Carolina like? What crops 
were raised ? How was education provided for ? 

XII. How were the people of Europe treated a few centuries ago ? How 
were debtors treated ? For what purpose was the colony of Georgia founded ? 
Who was its founder? How did Oglethorpe live at Savannah ? How did he 
treat the Indians ? What classes of people came to Georgia ? What did Ogle- 
thorpe do about slaves and rum? How did the colony prosper? What 
claim was made by Spain ? What did Oglethorpe do? What success did 
he have? What did the Spaniards do afterwards? What was the fate of 
their expedition? What kind of man was Oglethorpe? What were the 
laws that the people complained of? When were the planters allowed to 
have slaves? Was rum kept out of the colony? What important industry 
was started ? What was done with some of the first silk ? What celebrated 
English preachers came to Georgia? What church did these belong to? 
Were the Indians paid for their land? Why were they called Creeks? 
What did the chiefs give Oglethorpe? Was there any trouble with the 
Indians? 

XIII. How far back from the coast did the English colonies claim the 
country ? What other people claimed the back country ? How rapidly did 
the colonies grow ? How was the population divided ? What crops were 
raised ? How rich did the colonies grow ? Was it easy to get from one colony 
to another? Why not? Which colonies were close together? What had 
happened by 1750? Why were land journeys diificult? Why was there 
more social intercourse in New England than in the South ? Where were 
negro slaves kept? Why were they most useful in the South ? How were 
the governors appointed? What did England do about trade? What were 
tne people forbidden to make ? What was tho result of these laws? 



THE UNITED STATES. 97 



PART III. 

THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR. 
I.— THE FRENCH IN AMERICA. 

The English Colonies. — We have told the story of how 
the English came to America and settled along the coast of 
what is now the United States. The colonies they formed 
were not very large. They did not go far back from the 
coast, but their people laid claim to the land across the 
whole country to the Pacific Ocean. 

These claims were made only on paper. Most of the 
country to the west was still in the hands of the Indians ; 
but part of it was held by other white men, people of another 
nation, who had settled on it, and were not likely to give it 
up without a fight. 

The French Settlements. — These people were the French. 
They had forts and settlements along the line of the great 
lakes and down the Mississippi River as far as the Gulf of 
Mexico, and they intended to take possession of the country 
between the lakes and the Ohio River. If this had gone on 
the English would in time have been confined to their settle- 
ments along the coast, and the western country would have 
belonged to the French. But before we tell the story of 
what folloAved we must go back to the early French settlers, 
and relate what they were doing while the English were 
forming their colonies. 

Enterprise of the French. — The French had been more 



98 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

active in exploring the conntrv than the English. We have 
ah'eady told of how Cham[)lain made his way far into the 
country of the Iroquois, lie also sailed over some of the 
great lakes. Later on there were two things that took the 
French through the country. These were trade and religion. 
The French began early to trade with tlie Indians, and they 
travelled long distances in search of furs, and built trading- 
houses and forts far away from Quebec. Among them were 
many priests who belonged to the religious society known 
as the Jesuits. These priests wished to make Christians of 
the Indians, and made long journeys for that purpose, though 
they knew that they might be put to death by the savages. 

Marquette's Discovery. — One of these priests was named 
Marquette. He had spent years among the Indians, and 
knew their languages, and had often heard them speak of a 
mighty western river that ran far to the south. He wanted 
to see this river, and so in the year 1673 he crossed Lake 
Michigan and made his way partly by land and partly in 
Indian canoes along little lakes and streams, until he reached 
the Wisconsin River. 

He had with him a friend named Joliet and several others. 
For seven days they floated in canoes down the Wisconsin, 
until, to their joy, they found themselves on the great river 
of the West, the mighty Mississippi. De Soto had discovered 
this river one hundred and thirty years before, and had 
followed it as far north as the State of Missouri. Marquette 
floated down it until he reached the mouth of the Arkansas 
River. Then he and his friends turned and paddled their 
canoes up the stream again until they reached the point they 
had started from. 

This was a Avonderful journey for that early period. To 
see a few bold and daring men, hundreds of miles away from 
their countrymen, aloue among tribes of fierce Indians, toil- 



THE UNITED STATES. 99 

ing through the forests of the West, and paddhng in frail 
canoes along unknown and mighty lakes and streams, was 
to behold what has not often been seen in the history of the 
world. These men had no weapons in their hands. They 
had only the Bible. But Christian love and charity made 
them safer among the savages than if they had carried 
swords and muskets and been clothed from head to foot in 
armor of steel. 

La Salle's Journey. — The next person to reach the Mis- 
sissippi was a French gentleman, the Chevalier de La Salle. 
He knew what the English and the Spanish were doing, that 
they were taking possession of the New World, and he made 
up his mind that the French should own the great western 
country. So he got together a body of men, and began to 
explore the land beyond Lake Michigan, and to build forts 
and leave soldiers in them. He had many battles with the 
Indians, but he was not to be turned from his purpose. 

At last he started on the great journey which he had long 
had in mind. With a party of French and Indians he 
crossed the country, paddling along the streams and car- 
rying the canoes through the forests, until he reached the 
Mississippi. 

It was then the year 1682, something more than two 
hundred years ago. Down the great stream they went, 
among tribes who had never before seen a white man. 
Everywhere La Salle took possession of the country for the 
King of France. In time they reached the mouth of the 
Mississippi, and there La Salle laid claim to all the vast 
country drained by that mighty stream and by all the streams 
that ran into it. This country he named Louisiana, and 
declared that it belonged to France, and to the king, 
Louis XIV. 

La Salle's Later Life. — Then they went up the river again 



100 A^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

until they reached their starting-point. La Salle now re- 
turned to France, where every one looked on him as a hero. 
The king gave him ships and men to plant a colony at the 
mouth of the Mississippi, and the adventurers sailed joy- 
fully away. 

But their journey ended very sadly. They could not find 
the Mississippi, and landed at a place in Texas. Here La 
Salle built a fort, and then started with part of the men to find 
the Mississippi. The journey was a terrible one. The river 
was found, and La Salle tried to make his way to Canada 
for help, but on the way he was killed by some of his men. 
And so ended the life of one of the greatest of American 
explorers. 

The End of the Colony, — Some of the men got to Canada 
and told their story, and a party was sent to Texas to save 
those in the fort. But when they got there the men were 
dead and the fort was a ruin. The Spaniards had found 
them and put them all to death. This was the sad end of 
La Salle's great enterprise. 

Succeeding- Events. — But the French were not discour- 
aged. Another colony was sent out in 1699 to make a set- 
tlement near the mouth of the Mississippi, and before many 
years New Orleans and other towns were laid out. These 
towns were very far away from the French settlements on the 
St. Lawrence liiver. Thousands of miles of land and water 
lay between them. Yet nearly the whole distance might be 
travelled by water along the great lakes of the North, the 
Mississippi River, and the streams which ran into it. The 
active French traders were not afraid to make long journeys, 
and many of them travelled the whole way from Quebec to 
New Orleans. 

Before many years there were military posts at many 
points along this great water-way. Traders settled around 



THE UNITED STATES. 101 

the forts and priests built churches near by, so that in time 
there was a httle settlement at each fort. 

The Valley of the Ohio. — All this went on for fifty years. 
Cities now stand where many of the French forts were built. 
But at that time there were not many French in America. 
In 1750 there were fifteen times as many English as French 
in the New World. In the country east of the Mississippi 
and south of the great lakes there were only about seven 
thousand five hundred Frenchmen. 

The English were now making their way to the West. A 
company was formed, called the Ohio Company, to buy up 
land and get settlers to move westward. The lands of this 
company lay in Western Pennsylvania. 

When the French saw what the English were doing they 
were alarmed. They were afraid they would lose the 
country if they did not make haste. So they built a strong 
fort on Lake Erie, where the city of Erie now stands. It 
became clear that before long they would have forts on the 
Ohio !River. 

Danger in the Air. — It was plain enough now that there 
would be trouble. The great rivals had advanced till they 
were near together. Both of them claimed to own the 
Valley of the Ohio. They were beginning a race to see who 
should first get possession of it, and that race could not go 
on very long before the dreadful work of war would begin. 
Whether the French or the English should own the great 
basin of the Ohio and the Mississippi was soon to be settled 
by the sword and the cannon, and by the death of thou- 
sands of men. 

II.— GEORGE WASHINGTON. 

Early Wars. — There had been fighting in America be- 
tween the English and French two or three times before. 



102 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Every time a war broke out in Europe between these nations 
the settlers in America began to kill one another. In these 
wars most of the fighting was done by the Indians. We 
have already told how they attacked the settlements in New 
England and New York, and murdered the people. 

The Action of Virginia. — But now a war was to have its 
beginning in America. The French and English stood face 
to face, like two dogs ready to fly at each other's throats. It 
was not long before the struggle began. Virginia claimed 
the country to which the French were sending their pioneers, 
and the Governor of Virginia made up his mind to ask them 
what they were doing, and to tell them that the land they 
were on belonged to his colony. 

George Washington. — He soon picked out a messenger 
for this duty. This was a young man named George Wash- 
ington, who was then only a little over twenty years old. He 
had been born in 1732, and it was now 1753. But he was 
known to be active and prudent. He had been a land sur- 
veyor, and was used to hardship. So Washington was 
chosen to go to the West and ask the French why they had 
built the fort at Presque Isle, and what they intended to do, 
and to warn them that they were on English land. 

George Washington was born to be a great man, and he 
showed this while he was still a boy. Among his school- 
mates he was the same as he was among his countrymen 
afterwards. He settled all their disputes, and he would not 
let anytliing take place that was not just and fair. What- 
ever he had to do he did well. The books of exercises which 
he wrote at school are remarkal)le for their neatness and 
carefulness. When he was older he became a land surveyor, 
and his surveys are among the most accurate ever made. 
Later in life he managed his own lands, packed and shipped 
his own tobacco and flour, and kei)t his own books. His 



THE UNITED STATES. 103 

books may still be seen. They were wonderfully well kept. 
As a boy and a man Washington was strictly honest and 
truthful. AVhen his flour came into foreign ports the gov- 
ernment agents did not inspect it. His name on the barrel 
was enough. It was well known that there was no lie in the 
Washington stamp. It would be well for the country if all 
public men would stamp their characters with the Washing- 
ton stamp. This young man was destined to do a great 
work for America. We have now the first part of his public 
life to describe, but his name will come again into our work 
farther on. 

"Washington's Journey. — The journey from Virginia to 
Lake Erie was a difiicult one, for the country was wild and 
without roads, and it was the cold winter season. Washing- 
ton went up the Potomac River till he reached the streams 
that flow into the Ohio. He followed these till he met the 
French commander. The Frenchman treated him very 
politely, but would not promise to leave the country. This 
was the word that Washington brought back to Virginia. 

The journey back was terrible ; much of it lay through 
the wild wintry forest. The rivers were full of broken ice, 
and had to be crossed on rafts. In crossing the Alleghany 
River, Washington was thrown into the water, and had to 
spend the night on an island, wet through and nearly frozen. 
At last he got back home with the answer of the French 
commander. 

Fort Du Quesne. — Both sides saw that no time was to be 
lost. The French sent pioneers towards the Ohio. , The 
Ohio Company decided to build a fort at a point which 
Washington had picked out. This was where the two 
rivers that form the Ohio come together, and where the city 
of Pittsburg now stands. As the French were so busy 
building forts, the English thought they ought to build some 



104 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



too, SO they sent a party for this purpose. But when the 
French saw wliat was being done they drove the English 
workmen away and finished the fort themselves. They 
gave it the name of Fort Du Quesne. That was the first 
step that led to the severe war that followed. 

Fort Necessity. — At this time Washington was marching 
towards the place with about four hundred men who had 




WASHINGTON CROSSING THE ALLEGHANY RIVER. 



been enlisted in Virginia. A party of French soldiers came 
forward to meet him, and there was a fight in which Wash- 
ington was victorious. But he was in a dangerous position, 
so he built a small fort which he called Fort Necessity. The 
fort was soon surrounded by a large body of French and 
Indians, and the Virginians had to surrender. This took 
place on July 4, 1754. The English force went back to 



THE UNITED STATES. 105 

Virginia, where the people were much pleased with the skill 
and prudence of Washington, and the governor gave him 
the chief command of the Virginia soldiers. 

England and France. — During this time the English and 
French were fighting in other places. The first part of the 
war was fought by the people of America only. But soon 
England and France were at war in Europe and began to 
send soldiers across the ocean to help the colonists. An 
army was sent to the disputed territory, under an officer 
named General Braddock. 

General Braddock. — This general knew very well how to 
carry on war in Europe, but he knew nothing at all about 
fighting with the Indians, and he was too proud to let any 
one tell him. So he and his army, with some Virginians 
under Washington, set out to drive the French from Fort 
Du Quesne, 

They marched slowly through the woods, making roads 
as they went, and wasting a great deal of time. By the 
time they got near the French fort several months had 
passed. Yet there were not many French there, and the 
Indians were not in a very good humor for fighting ; so if 
Braddock had acted with common prudence he might soon 
have had the fort. But he knew too much to listen to any- 
body, and he soon got his army into trouble. 

Braddock's Defeat. — Washino:ton wanted to sro ahead 
with his Virginians and drive the Indians from the woods ; 
but Braddock would not let him, and he marched on, with 
banners flying and drums beating, until his army was in a 
deep ravine with steep banks and thick woods on each side. 
These woods were full of French and Indians in ambush. 

Suddenly the hidden enemy began to fire. The soldiers 
were taken completely by surprise, and fell dead and 
wounded on every side. The Virginians under Washing- 



106 A^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

ton knew what they were about, and got behind trees to 
fight; but Braddock would not let his soldiers do the same 
thing, but kept them in their ranks and made them stand 
still to be killed. They fired blindly into the woods, but 
did no harm to their foes, while hundreds of them were 
slain. When they could stand this no longer they turned 
and fled for their lives. Washington with his Virginians 
kept back the enemy, or many more of the British soldiers 
would have been slaughtered. It "was the most terrible 
defeat in the early history of America. 

The Result of the Battle. — The battle had lasted three 
hours, and seven hundred out of twelve hundred were killed. 
Braddock was mortally wounded, and all his officers were 
killed or wounded. Washington was the only oflicer that 
was not hurt, and he had two horses shot under him and 
four bullets through his coat. Long afterwards an old 
Indian chief said that he had fired many times at Washing- 
ton during the battle, but that the young American brave 
bore a charmed life and could not be touched by his 
bullets. 

The Indian Raids. — This defeat was a serious one for the 
colonies. The Ohio region was left to the French, while 
the Indians, who thought the English cowards, began to 
attack the settlements and murder all they could. All 
through the western part of Virginia the people had to flee 
for safety ; their houses were burned, and the rifle and the 
tomahawk brought death to many of them. Washington 
was kept busy in fighting with the savage foes, and did this 
with great skill and courage, but he had a difficult task. 

The Fort captured. — Three years afterwards Washington 
was sent again to take Fort Du Quesne. By this time the 
French had got the worst of the war, and when the French 
commander saw the English coming near he did not wait 



THE UNITED STATES. 



107 



for them. He marched his men out of the fort and left it 
to "Washington to take possession. 

The contest for the Valley of the Ohio ended in victory 
for the English. The French gave it up to their opponents, 
and never laid claim to it again. It was during this time 
that Washington learned the art of war, of which he was 
to make such excellent use in the coming war of the 
Revolution. 



III.— THE WAR IN THE NORTH. 

The Capture of Louisburg. — The war which had begun 
on the Ohio soon spread to other parts of the country. 




THE SIEGE OF LOUISBURG. 



There was much hard fighting in the North between New 
York and New England and the French settlements in 



108 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY^ OF 

Canada. The British fleet also took part in the war. The 
French had a very strong fortress at the town of Louisburg, 
on the island of Cape Breton. They thought that no force 
could capture it, but they were mistaken in this. It was 
captured in 1745 by a body of New England soldiers. At 
the end of the war it was given back to the French, but in 
1758 it was again attacked by a strong English fleet and 
forced to surrender. The English never gave it up again. 

Acadia. — The country which we now know as Nova 
Scotia and New Brunswick was called Acadia by the 
French. It was settled by people of French descent, many 
of whom had fine farms, and others lived by hunting and 
trapping. The peninsula of Xova Scotia had been taken 
from the French by the English in 1710, and was still held 
by them ; but it had very few English settlers, and its peo- 
ple did not like to be under English rule. 

The northern part of Acadia was still held by the French, 
and w^hen the war began they built several forts on the Bay 
of Fundy, and got ready to try and drive the English from 
the country. But the English attacked these forts and took 
them all. While the fighting was going on many of the 
Acadians helped the French. The English did not like this. 
They said that they would not have spies and enemies in 
their own land, and that the people must take the oath of 
allegiance to England, and be ready to fight in the English 
armies if they should be needed. 

This the Acadians would not do. All their feelings were 
with the French, and they would not help the English. 
Then the English said that they should be all sent out 
of the country, since they would not submit to the gov- 
ernment. 

The Acadians expelled. — Many of the Acadians were 
quiet and good citizens, but all who could be found were 



THE UNITED STATES. 109 

marched to the sea-shore and put on board ships and sent 
away to the different English colonies. Some of them 
fought with the English and drove them away, but several 
thousand were taken from their homes and sent to live 
among strangers. Their houses were burned and their 
farms ruined to keep them from coming back. 

This was a very cruel act. The English had reason to be 
angry with those Acadians who acted as spies and enemies ; 
but most of the people were quiet and industrious, and all 
their crime was that they would not take an oath to bear 
arms against their countrymen. In time many of those 
who had been sent away returned and took the oath of 
allegiance to England ; but others suffered many hardships, 
and died in foreign lands. 

From Canada to New York. — We have spoken in a 
former chapter of the great water-way by which the French 
could get from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico. There is 
another water-way, that which leads from the St. Lawrence 
River to Lake Champlain and Lake George, and by way 
of the Hudson River to New York Bay. It was this route 
that Champlain had taken when he first set out to fight 
the Indians, and it was along these bodies of water that the 
remainder of the fighting took place. 

The French Defences. — The French had built forts along 
the Niagara River and Lake Ontario, and also at Crown 
Point, at the southern end of Lake Champlain, and at Ti- 
conderoga, at the northern end of Lake George. From 
these points they could easily send soldiers into ISTew York 
and New England, so the English decided to try to take the 
forts. 

The Battle of Lake George. — The English army in New 
York was led by General Johnson. There were many In- 
dians with it, for the Iroquois tribes had hated the French 



110 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

ever since they had fought with Champlain. While John- 
son was marching north the French were marching south, 
and the two armies met at the southern end of Lake George. 
Here a battle took place in which the French were badly 
defeated. Hundreds of them were killed and the rest 
driven back. Johnson did not go on to capture the French 
forts, but stayed where he was, and built a fort which he 
called William Henry. 

The French Successes. — During the next two or three 
years the French were everywhere successful. They cap- 
tured Fort William Henry in 1757, and a terrible event 
took place there. The English were promised their lives if 
they would give up the fort, but as soon as they marched 
out the Indians fell upon them with tomahawk and scalping- 
knife and murdered many of them in cold blood. The 
French did nothing to save them. This was one of the most 
shameful massacres in American history. 

Attack on Ticonderog-a. — The next year General Aber- 
crombio attacked Fort Ticonderoga with a strong army. 
But the French defended themselves bravely, and the Eng- 
lish were forced to retreat in haste, after they had lost two 
thousand men. 

The Turning of the Tide. — The war had now lasted for 
four years, and the French had been successful at nearly 
every point. They had held their forts on Lake Champlain 
and Lake George, and on the Ohio, and had defeated the 
English in nearly every battle. The English were much the 
stronger in numbers, and all they needed was good leaders. 
With these they would be sure to gain the victory. 

In the year 1758 the tide turned. The English took sev- 
eral of the French forts, and in 1759 took several others. 
Ticonderoga and Crown Point were taken, and also the 
forts on Lake Ontario and the Niagara River. The French 



THE UNITED STATES. HI 

were driven out of what the English claimed as their terri- 
tory, and were confined to Canada. The English next made 
up their minds to try to drive the French from Canada. 

The Sieg-e of Quebec. — Canada had two important cities, 
Montreal and Quebec. Quebec was not easy to capture. 
It was built on the top of a high and steep hill, and was 
surrounded with strong walls, behind which were more 
than eight thousand men, commanded by the Marquis de 
Montcalm. 

General Wolfe led an army of eight thousand men against 
this city, and for two or three months tried to take it, but 




THE HEIGHTS OF QUEBEC. 



he could not even get to the top of the hill on which it was 
built. At length he learned that there was a narrow path 
up the face of the blufi". One dark night he took his men 
in boats down the St. Lawrence liiver, and by the break of 
day they had climbed up this steep path and dragged their 
cannon to the top of the hill. 

The Capture of the City. — Montcalm was astonished 
when he saw the English army before the walls of the city. 
If he had stayed behind these walls it is not likely they 



112 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

could have taken it. But he hastily led his men out, think- 
ing he could drive' the English over the precipice before 
they all got up the hill. He was sadly mistaken. In the 
battle that followed the English gained a complete victory 
and Quebec fell into their hands. 

General Wolfe received a mortal wound, and as he lay 
dying he heard loud cries of " They fly ! they fly !" " Who 
fly?" he asked. " The French," was the answer. " God be 
praised!" he replied. "I die happy." Montcalm also fell, 
and when told that he must die, he said, " So much the 
better; I shall not live to see the surrender of Quebec." 

End of the War. — Montreal was taken the next year, and 
soon the war came to an end. A treaty was made between 
England, France, and Spain in 1763, by which France gave 
up to England all the country east of the Mississippi River, 
and to Spain all the country west of it. This was a great 
event for the English colonies. North America now 
belonged to two nations only, England and Spain. 

Pontiac's Rebellion, — The French in Canada made some 
further trouble. There was a bold and brave Indian chief 
named Pontiac, who tried to drive the English back from 
the Ohio and the lakes, and perhaps from the whole country. 
The French secretly incited him to this. He made a league 
between several tribes, and a sudden attack was made on 
the English forts. 

They took one fort by the trick of playing a game of 
ball before it. When the ball fell near the gate of the fort 
they rushed after it and into the open gate, near which sat 
their squaws, with tomahawks hidden under their blankets. 
These the warriors seized and killed nearly all the soldiers. 
The fort at Detroit was besieged for five months, and then 
the Indians gave up the siege. Several other forts were 
taken, but in the end the Indians were everywhere defeated. 



THE UNITED STATES. 113 

This was the end of the French and Indian war, which 
had continued, at intervals, for seventy-live years. The 
English were everywhere victorious, and were now to have 
a few years of rest from war. 



PART III.-QUESTIONS FOR EXAMINATION. 

I. How far back from the coast did the English colonies extend ? How far 
did their claims extend ? Who held the back country ? "Where had the French 
forts and settlements ? What were their intentions ? What two things induced 
the French to explore the country ? For what purpose did the traders 
travel? For what purpose the Jesuits? What did Marquette wish to do? 
Describe his journey. Did the priests need weapons to protect them from the 
Indians ? Who, after Marquette, sought to explore the Mississippi ? What 
else did he wish to do ? In what year did he reach the Mississippi ? Describe 
his journey. How was La Salle received in France ? Where did his colony 
land ? What became of him ? What was the fate of the colony ? Where 
did the French make a settlement in 1699 ? What city was laid out? How 
could the French get from Quebec to New Orleans ? How were settlements 
formed along the route ? How many more English than French were in 
America in 1750? What was the object of the Ohio Company? Where 
did the French build a fort ? For what purpose ? What did both the rival 
peoples claim ? How was the dispute to be settled ? 

II. What did the Governor of Virginia decide to do ? Whom did he select 
as messenger? How old was Washington then? Why was he chosen? 
What was he to say to the French ? What can we say about the school-life 
of Washington ? What did he do in older life ? How were his books kept? 
How was his flour received in foreign lands ? Describe Washington's journey. 
How did the French commander act? Describe Washington's return. What 
did the Ohio Company decide to do ? What did the French do ? How and 
with whom did the first fight take place ? Why did Washington build Fort 
Necessity ? What followed ? What general did England send to America ? 
What did he know about war? Describe his march. What did Wa-shin^ton 
want to do ? How did Braddock lead his army on ? Describe the battle and 
defeat. Was Wii-shington hurt? What did an old Indian chief say about 
him ? What followed this defeat ? When was Fort Du Quesne taken ? By 
whom ? What did this war teach Washington ? 

III. When was Louisburg captured the first time? When the second 
time ? What was the country of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick called by 



114 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

the French? What part of it was taken by the English in 1710? "What 
part was still held by the French ? What success did the English gain ? 
What did they ask the Acadians to do ? Why did the Acadians refuse ? 
What then did the English resolve to do ? Tell how the Acadians were ex- 
pelled. What is said about this act ? Why was it cruel ? What water-way 
leads from Canada to New York ? Where did the French build forts ? What 
was the result of the battle of Lake George ? What fort did General Johnson 
build ? AVhen was this fort captured by the French ? What terrible event 
took place ? Describe Abercrombie's attack on Ticonderoga. How long were 
the French successful ? When did the tide of success turn ? What successes 
had the English ? Which were the two important cities of Canada ? How 
was Quebec defended ? Who led an army against it ? How did he get his 
men to the summit of the bluff ? What did Montcalm do ? Who gained 
the victory ? What happened to General Wolfe ? What were his last words ? 
What were Montcalm's last words ? What did England gain by the treaty 
of peace? What did Pontiac hope to do? Describe his attacks on the forts. 
Were there any more French and Indian wars ? 



THE UNITED STATES. 115 



PART IV. 

THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 

I.— THE TYKANNY OF ENGLAND. 

The Story of the Revolution, — The story we have now 
to tell is one that every American should hear with pride. 
It is the story of how the people of America were ill treated 
by England, and how they declared they would not submit 
to be made slaves of, and fought bravely until they gained 
their liberty. They suffered dreadfully, and thousands of 
them lost their lives, but they would not yield, and struggled 
on and on until England was forced to give up the war and 
sign a treaty of peace ^vith free America. This is what is 
known as the American Revolution. 

The Navigation Acts. — What was this bad treatment of 
the Americans? That is what we have next to tell. They 
were ill used in a good many ways. Governors had been 
sent to them from England, and some of these acted as if 
they were kings and the people slaves. But what made the 
Americans most angry was that they were not allowed to 
trade where they pleased or make the articles they needed 
for their own use. They had built many ships, and for a 
while they sent out their goods to foreign countries and got 
other goods in return. 

But the merchants of England did not like this. They 
wanted this trade for themselves. So they had laws passed 
which said that the Americans should not trade with any 



116 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

country but England, All their rice, tobacco, and other 
products must be sent there and whatever they wanted in 
return must be brought from there. But the English would 
not pay as much for these goods as other countries, so the 
Americans lost much of their profit. 

Then another law was made which said that no goods 
should be carried to or from England in American ships. 
All trade with England must be done in English ships. 
The American ships might rot at their wharves. Even the 
trade from one colony to another was partly stopped. 

Restriction of Manufactures. — At the same time the peo- 
ple of America were not allowed to make anything for them- 
selves. There was much iron dug from the mines, but it 
must all be sent to England, and pay a tax for going there. 
Then it was made into useful articles and sent back, and 
had to pay another tax. It was the same with other goods 
than those made of iron. The laws became so severe that 
a farmer could not even cut down a large tree on his own 
land without permission from the officers of the king. 

At first the laws were not so strict as this. But as time 
went on, and the English merchants and manufacturers saw 
that the Americans were growing rich, they had the laws 
made more severe, until the Americans were allowed to do 
very little besides farming, and had to get everything but 
their food from England, in English ships. 

The Laws evaded. — All this was hard to bear. "WTien 
men have a chance to grow rich they do not like to work 
hard to make other men rich, while the}- stay poor. Many 
of the people of America refused to submit to the English 
laws. Some of them made and sold goods in spite of the 
laws. Others who owned ships sent them to foreign coun- 
tries, and brought back goods on which no tax or duty was 
paid to the government. 



THE UNITED STATES. 117 

This is what is called smuggling. The officers of the 
government tried to ])ut a stop to it. A law was passed 
which said that the king's officers might enter and search 
any house where they thought that smuggled goods were 
hidden. The papers authorizing this were called " Writs 
of Assistance." IsTothing could have made the people more 
angry than this. They said that " every man's house is his 
castle," and that no officer had a right to enter a dwelling- 
house on mere suspicion. Thus, as every one may see, 
there was getting to be bad feeling between the Americans 
and the English. 

The Right of Taxation. — But the resistance of the people 
only made the English government more severe. As the 
merchants and manufacturers of England were growing 
rich from the labor of the Americans, the government 
thought it also ought to have more American money than 
it was receiving. The French and Indian war had cost 
England a great deal of money, and the English government 
claimed that as this money had been spent for the good of 
the colonies, they should help to pay it back. The colonies 
were paying much money to it already in the way of the 
duty on all goods sent by ships into or out of the country. 
This was an indirect tax, but the government claimed that 
it had the right to lay a direct tax also. 

The American Reply. — The people of the colonies an- 
swered that they were willing to tax themselves and pay 
the money to the government, but that no one else had the 
right to tax them. They would not pay taxes levied by the 
English Parliament, because they had no one to speak for 
them in that Parliament. If the government wanted to tax 
them it should let them send representatives to look after 
their interests. 

The Principle of Taxation. — All this was reasonable. 



118 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Every Englishman at home claimed that right, and the 
Americans thought they ought to have it too. But the gov- 
ernment would not listen to them. It had made up its 
mind to treat them as slaves, and force them to pay what 
taxes it pleased without giving them a voice in the making 
of the laws. The rulers of England did not know what 
they were doing. They had no idea how strongly the 
Americans were set against tyranny. They were soon to 
find out. 

The Stamp Act. — The first direct tax law was passed in 
1765. It was called the " Stamp Act," and declared that all 
legal papers drawn in America, such as deeds, bills, con- 
tracts, and the like, must be made on stamped paper, which 
paper was to be sold by the tax collectors. There was noth- 
ing very wrong in this. Laws of this kind have long existed 
in England. We have had them in the United States, and 
have paid the tax cheerfull}'. It was the way the law was 
passed that made all the trouble. It was as if England had 
said, " "We intend to tax you when and how we please, and 
you shall have nothing to do with it except to pay the 
taxes." This was the beginning of the dispute wliich in 
ten years was to bring the country into war. 

The whole people grew angry when they heard of this law. 
They said that they had had nothing to do with making 
it and that they would not submit to it. Patrick Henry, a 
great orator of Virginia, declared that the people, and only 
the people, had a right to tax the people. They could vote 
taxes in their own assemblies, if they were asked to, but no 
other body of law-makers had the right to vote taxes for 
them to pay. 

Repeal of the Stamp Act. — The stamps were sent to 
America, but the people would not use them. In some places 
they burned them. In others they forced the stamp officers 



THE UNITED STATES. 119 

to resign, or made images of them and burned these images 
before their doors. They declared that till the act was re- 
pealed they would not use English goods, but would make 
their own. They would all wear homespun clothes, and 
would eat no mutton, so that they could have more wool to 
weave into cloth. 

Agents were sent to London to try and have the Stamp 
Act repealed. Benjamin Franklin was one of these. He 
did much to let the members of Parliament see how the 
American people felt. In 1766 the Stamp Act was repealed, 
because it was clear that it could not be enforced. No 
American would buy a sheet of the stamped paper. 

Soldiers sent to America. — In 1767 taxes were laid on 
tea, glass, paints, and other articles, and soldiers were sent 
to America to force the people to pay these taxes. The 
Americans were also ordered to pay for the support of these 
soldiers. They answered that this was not just. They did 
not want to be treated like a nation that had been conquered 
in war. Their protest made the king very angry, and he 
sent four regiments of soldiers to Boston to support the tax 
officers. This was done because the people of Boston were 
very violent against the new taxes. The presence of the 
soldiers made them more angry still, and disputes and quar- 
rels arose between the people and the soldiers. One day, in 
1770, a light took place between some soldiers and a party 
of the citizens of Boston. The soldiers fired and several 
persons were killed. This added much to the angry feel- 
ing of the people. They called this affair the " Boston 
Massacre," and as the news of it spread over the country 
the colonists everywhere began to think of fighting for their 
rights. 

The Tax on Tea. — For several years things went on in 
this way, the people growing more angry with the English 



120 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 




government. As they would not pay the taxes, Parliament 
tried another plan. They took off all the taxes except a 
small one on tea. This was such a trifle that they thought 
no one would object to it. They did not perceive that it was 
not the money that the Americans cared for, but the princi- 
ple. As soon as the tax was laid the colonists refused to 
buy tea, though they had before used a great deal of it. 

The Boston Tea-Party. — Then the king, George m., 
made up his mind to force them to take the tea. Ship-loads 
of it were sent to all the American ports. 
But the people, who were then using the 
leaves of various plants to make tea of, 
would not have the English tea. In IS^ew 
York and Philadelphia the captains were 
ordered to take their tea back again to 
England. In Charleston the tea was 
stored in damp warehouses, where it soon 
moulded and became useless. In An- 
napolis the tea was burned. In Boston 
the governor refused to send back the 
tea, but the people would not let it be 
unloaded. At last a party of young men 
dressed like Indians ran to the wharves, 
rushed on board the vessels, broke open 
the chests, and emptied all the tea into 
the harbor. This is what has been called 
the "Boston Tea-Party." It put an end to the effort of 
Parliament to tax the Americans. 

The Boston Port Bill. — "When the news of this act reached 
England the king was furious, and it was determined that 
Boston should be severely punished. So a bill was passed 
called the " Boston Port Bill." It forbade any vessel to enter 
or leave Boston, except those with wood or provisions, and 







BOSTON TEA-PARTY. 



THE UNITED STATES. 121 

even these had trouble to get in. The whole trade of the 
port was cut off, and the town was so full of soldiers that 
the law could easily be carried out. 

Threats of War. — This law took effect on June 1, 1774. 
It made the people of the whole country very indignant. 
Provisions and money were sent to Boston from all the colo- 
nies. Instead of the Americans being frightened, they were 
more determined than ever. It began to look as if it must 
all end in war, and the people got their arms ready, and 
drilled, and formed companies ready to march at a minute's 
warning. These were called " Minute-Men." In Septem- 
ber, 1774, all the colonies sent delegates to Philadelphia, to 
meet and talk over the troubles. This assembly was called 
the First Continental Congress. It sent an address to the 
king, and advised the people to stop all trade with England 
till the tax laws were repealed. It declared that the people 
of America had the right to govern and to tax themselves, 
and that they would not submit to force, but would defend 
themselves against oppression. Such was the state of the 
country at the beginning of the year 1775. 

II.— THE WORK OF THE MINUTE-MEN. 

Growth of the Colonies. — We have next to describe the 
greatest event in American history, that by which the peo- 
ple of America became free, and began their growth from 
a group of weak colonies into one of the noblest nations on 
the face of the earth. 

It was now a little more than a hundred and fifty years 
since the English had first settled in America. In that cen- 
tury and a half the colonies had grown to be strong and were 
becoming united. There were more than two millions of 
people in them, and they were fast growing rich and pros- 



122 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

perous. Since the close of tlie French and Indian war they 
had made great progress. 

Ten Years of Tyranny. — In 1765 no one in America 
thought of becoming free from England. In 1775 most of 
the people of the country wanted to become free. That was 
what England had done in ten years by trying to make 
slaves of the Americans. 

The Feeling of the People. — At the opening of the event- 
ful year 1775, Boston was the centre of the troubles. The 
king had ruined its business, taken from many of its people 
the means of living, and filled it with soldiers. But all 
through New England the people were getting ready to fight, 
drilling as soldiers, and collecting arms, gunpowder, and 
other warlike articles in convenient places. The whole coun- 
try was like a barrel of gunpowder, ready to explode if fire 
touched it. We have now to tell how the English applied 
the fire. 

The Stores at Concord. — The Americans had collected 
some military stores at the town of Concord, near Boston. 
Gen\;ral Gage, who commanded the soldiers in Boston, 
determined to destroy these. So one night he sent out a 
body of troops to march secretly to Concord and destroy 
them before the people could know what was being done. 
He did not understand the spirit of the people he was deal- 
ing with. It is very easy to throw a stone into a hornets' 
nest, but it is not so easy to get away from the stings of the 
hornets. This General Gage was soon to find out. 

Paul Revere's Ride. — The people of Boston were watch- 
ing the soldiers. They had some idea of the plans of the 
British, and were ready for them. As soon as the troops 
began to move a signal light was hung in a church window. 
On the other side of the river a man named Paul Revere 
was watching for this light. The moment he saw it he 



THE UNITED STATES. 



123 



mounted his horse and rode at full speed through the coun- 
try. At every house and village he woke the people and 
told them the British 
were coming. At once 
the men seized their 
rifles and powder- 
horns and hastened to 
the appointed place of 
meeting. By daybreak 
a party of them were 
collected in the vil- 
lage of Lexington, on 
the road to Concord. 
Samuel Adams and 
John Hancock, two 
of the patriot leaders, 
were at Lexington, 
and the British offi- 
cers had orders to ar- 
rest them. But they 
were warned by Re- 
vere and made their 
escape before the 
troops arrived. 

The Fight at Lexington. — The soldiers reached Lexington 
about four o'clock in the morning of April 19, 1775. There 
were two or three hundred of them, and they found about 
sixty armed farmers drawn up on the green. " Disperse, ye 
rebels," cried the English officer. " Lay down your arms 
and disperse." Then the soldiers fired, and seven of the 
Americans fell dead. Others were wounded. That was the 
first bloodshed in the Revolutionary war. "With tliat fire 
of musketry began the war that was to set America free. 




PAUL REVEKEd KIDE. 



124 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 




THE UNITED STATES. 125 

The Retreat from Concord. — The soldiers hurried on to 
Concord, where they destroyed all the supplies they could 
find. But the Americans had been busy during the night 
carrying their stores to the woods. A strong force of min- 
ute-men had gathered at Concord. The British fired on 
these and the Americans fired back. Several of the soldiers 
were killed and wounded, and the others retreated in 
disorder. 

But it was when the soldiers began to march back to Bos- 
ton that they found the hornets were out of their nest and 
ready to sting them. They had sixteen miles to go, and all 
along this distance the minute-men were gathered behind 
trees and stone walls, firing on them at every step. The 
British fell like dead leaves. At last they ran in a panic. 
Few or none of them would have got back, only that another 
strong force of soldiers marched out and met them at 
Lexington. 

There were eighteen hundred of them now, but the 
farmers fired on them all the way to Boston, and they were 
glad enough to get under shelter of the guns of their ships 
of war. They had been saying to themselves that the 
Americans were cowards and would not fight. They were 
not likely to say that again. 

The People in Arms. — The day before April 19 the 
country had been at peace. The day after it was at war. 
The story of the fight went like wildfire through the coun- 
try. Everywhere the farmers left their ploughs and seized 
their rifles. In hundreds and thousands they hurried 
towards Boston. Soon there were twenty thousand men 
around that city. The British had made their last march 
out of Boston by land. When they went again they would 
have to go as they had come, in their ships by sea. 

Capture of Ticonderoga. — The " Green Mountain Boys," 



126 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



of Vermont, did not march to Boston. Ethan Allen led 
them to Fort Ticonderoga, on Lake Champlain, which they 
captured, May 10, ^\dthout firing a gun. The fort at Crown 
Point was taken in the same way, and many cannon 
captured. 

Breed's Hill fortified. — Such was the opening of the war. 
Now we must tell of the first great battle. One dark night 
the Americans went out to build a fort of earth on Bunker 
Hill, near Boston; but they found that Breed's Hill was 
still nearer, so they built their fort on that. When day broke, 
June 17, the British found that there was along wall of earth 
where none had been the night before. Behind this wall 
lay men with rifles in their hands. There was only one 
thing to be done : they must drive the Americans out of 
these earthworks or they could not stay in Boston. 

The First Battle of the War, — The ships began firing, 
but the Americans went on with their work. Then three 
thousand soldiers crossed the river in boats and began to 
march up the hill. The American militia, under General 
Putnam and Colonel Prescott, lay behind 
their bank of earth and saw these soldiers 
— some of the best trained in the world 
— marching steadily upward. No one 
had dreamed that raw volunteers could 
stand before such veteran troops, yet the 
Americans did not flinch. " Aim low. 
Don't fire till you can see the whites of 
their eyes," said the American general. 
So they waited till the soldiers were close 
to the works and then fired. Every shot told. Down went 
dozens of men. No living beings could stand such a fire, and 
the soldiers turned and ran hastily down the hill. They had 
found out to their sorrow what American marksmen could do. 




THE UNITED STATES. 127 

They came on once more and were met with a second 
terrible volley. Down the hill they ran in a panic again. 
Their ofScers had great trouble to get them to face a third 
time the American fire. But the Americans were now 
nearly out of powder. They fired once more, and then used 
their guns as clubs to drive back the soldiers. When the 
British found that the firing had stopped, they came on with 
the bayonet, while the ships fired cannon-balls into the 
works. The Americans now had to retreat. They were 
followed by the furious soldiers and many of them were 
killed in the retreat. But they had killed more than twice 
as many as they lost, and had taught the world that Ameri- 
can militia were not afraid to fight British regulars. 

The Action of Congress. — We must tell more rapidly 
what followed. The Second Continental Congress met at 
Philadelphia in May, 1775. There was much to be done 
now. Laws had to be passed for the whole country, and 
preparations made to carry on the war, for the people were 
all determined that it should go on. General Washington 
was made commander of the army at Boston, and money 
was voted for the purposes of the war. The people were 
willing enough to pay taxes to their own Congress, though 
they would not to the English Parliament. Their feeling 
was afterwards expressed in these words : " Millions for 
defence ; not one cent for tribute." 

Evacuation of Boston. — Now there was war in earnest. 
Washington drilled the army at Boston and did his best to 
make soldiers out of farmers. It took a long time to do this, 
and it was the spring of the next year before he was ready. 
Then one night he built strong earthworks on Dorchester 
Heights, south of Boston. The British general looked at 
these works and quickly saw that he could not take them 
without losing many of his men, and that he could not stay 



128 ^-^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

in Boston if he did not take them. So he decided to leave. 
On March 17, 1776, his men were marched on board the 
vessels, which set sail for Halifax, never to return to Boston. 
The same day the Americans took possession of the city 
which they had so long besieged. 

The Attack on Quebec. — While this was going on the 
Americans tried to take Canada. Two armies were led 
there, one under General Montgomery and one under Gen- 
eral Arnold. Montreal was captured and the army marched 
to Quebec. This city proved too strong. General Mont- 
gomery was killed, and General Arnold, who now took com- 
mand, stayed there during the winter, but had to retreat the 
next spring. The British followed him down Lake Cham- 
plain and had a naval battle with him on that lake. The 
Americans had fancied that the Canadians would join them, 
but they refused to do so, and Canada remained a British 
province. 

Fort Moultrie defended. — Tliere is one more event of 
importance that took place at this time. The English gov- 
ernment 1 bought that it ouglit to make sure of the Southern 
colonies. So in June a fleet was sent to Charleston, South 
Carolina, But it was soon found that the Southerners were 
as determined not to be slaves as the Northerners. Fort 
Moultrie, at the mouth of the harbor, was built of logs of 
the soft palmetto wood. The balls from the ships sunk in 
these and did little harm. Those from the fort did great 
damage to the ships. In the end the fleet had to turn and 
sail away. 

Brave Sergeant Jasper. — There was one event of this 
battle that is well worth telling. During the fight the flag- 
staff on the fort was cut by a ball, and the flag fell on the 
sand at the foot of the wall. A bold young sergeant, named 
Jasper, sprang down where the bullets were coming in like 



THE UNITED STATES. 129 

hail, seized the flag, and soon had it floating proudly again 
on the fort. This has always been looked upon as one of 
the bravest deeds of the whole war. 

Footsteps of Freedom. — And now we must finish this 
part of our story by telling what turned the war from a rebel- 
lion into a revolution. When the Americans began to fight, 
it was done to teach the king and his government that they 
would not pay taxes if they were not allowed to help make 
the laws. But many of them thought that America ought 
to be free, and as the war went on this feeling spread widely 
among the people. They quit fighting for their rights 
under the British government, and began to fight for their 
freedom from that government. 

The Continental Congress was still in session at Phila- 
delphia, and the desire for freedom grew as strong among 
the delegates as it was among the people. The first motion 
for liberty was made on June 7, 1776, by Richard Henry 
Lee, of Virginia. He moved that the colonies, one and all, 
" of right ought to be free and independent States." 

The Declaration of Independence. — Five men were then 
appointed as a committee to draw up a 
Declaration of Independence. On this 
committee were Benjamin Franklin, 
John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson. 
Jefferson wrote the Declaration, which 
was immediately brought before Con- 
gress, and adopted by it on the 4th of 
July, 1776. All the members signed it, 
and this valuable old paper still exists, 
Avith their signatures to it. As soon as 

O ^ JEFFERSON. 

word came that it had passed there rang 
out loud and stirring peals from the bell of the old State- 
House, on which was the inscription, " Proclaim liberty 




130 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



throughout the land to all the inhahitants thereof." The 
news had been told to the old bell-ringer, and he pulled at the 
rope w^th all his might, while every stroke of the bell seemed 
to send the word " Liberty" ringing over the land. Every- 
where the people rejoiced to learn that they had been de- 
clared free. The statue of King George, in New York, was 
thrown into the dirt of the streets, and the arms of England 




KEADIN(J THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE TO THE PEOPLE. 



were torn down from the public buildings of the cities and 
burned in the streets, while the flag of Great Britain ceased 
to float anywhere in the new republic, for at that time there 
was not a British soldier on American soil. 

It was a grand declaration that had been made, and all 
lovers of liberty throughout the world heard of it A^dth 
gladness. It said that a new nation was born upon the 



THE UNITED STATES. 131 

earth, and that the people of America were no longer fight- 
ing for the right to tax themselves, hut for the right to 
govern themselves. But many dark days were to pass before 
they could gain the privilege of doing so in peace.* 



III.— THE WAK FOR INDEPENDENCE. 

The Meaning- of the Declaration. — The people of America 
had declared that they were free and independent, but 
that did not make them so. They were to have years of 
hard fighting and great suifering before they could really 
become free. But now they had something of value to fight 
for. They were no longer troubled about paying taxes at 
the command of the English Parliament. They had de- 
clared that in future they would make their own laws, lay 
their own taxes, and carry on their own aftairs, and that no 
other nation should rule them. That is what was meant by 
the Declaration of Independence, adopted on the 4th of July, 
1776 ; and that is what has made the 4th of July ever since 
a day to be celebrated. It is the greatest day in the history 
of America. 

The Loss of New York. — After the Declaration the war 
went on more fiercely than before. The British had been 
driven out of Boston, so they decided to take ISTew York. 
Washington tried to defend it, but he did not have men 
enough, and after a hard battle on Long Island he had to 

* The first Declaration of Independence in America was made by a con- 
vention of delegates in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, in May, 1775. 
They were chosen by the militia of that county, and were in session when the 
news of the battle of Lexington was received. Thej' at once passed resolu- 
tions which declared the colonies to be free from English rule and entitled to 
govern themselves. This action was well received throughout Western North 
Carolina, and a copy of the resolutions was sent to Congress at Philadelphia. 



132 ^-fV ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

retreat and give up the city. The British army held Xew 
York from that time till the end of the war. 

The Retreat across New Jersey, — The country was now 
in a sad state. Washington's army was not half as strong 
as that of his enemies. Very few of the men were trained 
soldiers. They were short of powder, guns, provisions, and 
all that an army needs. It was now the winter of 1776. 
Washington found that he could not hold his own against 
the British, so he had to retreat. He marched his poor, 
ragged, hungry men south across New Jersey, and as he 
went he burnt the bridges to keep the British back. AVhen 
he got to the Delaware River, he took possession of all the 
boats that could be found, and had his army rowed across. 
The British quickly came up, but Washington's army was 
safe. There was a river between them, and no boats for 
the British to cross in. 

The Feeling of the People. — The British were full of 
hope and joy, for they thought the fighting was nearly at an 
end, and settled down to pass the winter in peace. All 
through Europe it was believed that the American cause 
was ruined, and that the colonists would have to submit. 
Many of the Americans thought so too. They saw their 
army growing smaller every day, and knew that most of 
the men would go home on the 1st of January, as the time 
for which they had enlisted would end then. They had 
joined the army only for the year, and not many new men 
were coming to take their place. The people everywhere 
were disheartened, and many thought there was no chance 
of success. 

"Washing-ton crosses the Delaware. — But there was one 
man that did not tldnk so, and that man was George Wash- 
ington. He waited till Christmas, and then led his men 
across the Delaware into New Jersey. It was a terrible 



THE UNITED STATES. 133 

crossing ; the weather was very cold, and the river full of 
cakes of floating ice. Yet he got the army across and 
marched all night towards Trenton, where a British force 
was feasting and frolicking without the thought of an 
enemy. This force was made up of Hessians, — soldiers from 
Germany who had been hired from their rulers and sent 
over by England to tight the Americans. 

Trenton and Princeton. — It was early in the morning 
when Washington reached the town. The Hessians were 
taken by surprise, many of them were killed and wounded, 
and a thousand taken prisoners. A few days afterwards 
Washington met another British force near Princeton and 
defeated them. Soon after that the British left New Jersey 
and Washington remained in possession. The Americans 
who had been in despair now became fall of hope. In 
Europe the feeling changed. It began to be thought that 
America would win, and everybody spoke of George Wash- 
ington as the great hero of the age. 

Philadelphia captured. — The year 1777 was an important 
year of the war. In the Middle States the 
Americans lost ground, but in the North 
they gained a great victory. The British 
left New York, with a strong fleet and a 
large army, and sailed up Chesapeake Bay. , 
Washington hastened to meet them, and a 
severe battle was fought on the Brandywine " 
Creek, below Philadelphia, at which the Mar- 
quis de La Fayette, a distinguished French ^^ fayette. 
oflicer, an aide to General Washington, was 
severely wounded. The Americans were defeated and had to 
fall back, and the British army marched into Philadelphia. 

The Winter at Valley Forge. — Some other fighting took 
place, and there was a severe battle at Germantown, near 




134 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



Philadelphia. But the British could not be driven from the 
city, and when winter came on the American army went 
into winter-quarters at a place called Valley Forge, north- 
west of Philadelphia. This winter was the most terrible 
one of the whole war. The weather was very cold, and the 
men were nearly destitute of 
clothes and blankets to keep 
them warm and food to keep 
them alive. Some of them 
had to walk through the snow 
barefoot, their bleeding feet 
staining the snow red as they 
marched. When spring came 
very many of the men were 





IN CAMP AT VALLEY KORGE. 



dead. Cold and hunger and sickness had been more fatal 
to them than the guns of the enemy. Yet those that lived 
were good patriots still, and as ready to fight for their 
country as before. And Washington never despaired. 

Burgoyne's March. — In the North, as we have said, the 
Americans had gained a great victory, and this gave spirit 
to the suffering army in Pennsylvania. A powerful British 
army had marched down from Canada by the old route of 



THE UNITED STATES. 135 

the French, that of Lake Champlain and Lake George. 
They thought they could cut ISTew England off from New 
York, and thus divide the colonics into two parts. They 
took all the old forts, — Ticonderoga, Crown Point, and 
others. Another army was coming up the Hudson to meet 
them, and everything looked bad for the Americans. 

The Battle of Bennington. — But the men of that region 
were everywhere marching, rifle in hand, to defend their 
country. The Iroquois Indians had joined the British, but 
these were scared off and gave up the fight. The parties 
of the British sent out to collect food were attacked by the 
Americans. One of these parties was met at Bennington, 
Vermont, by General Stark, with his " Green Mountain 
Boys," and badly defeated. When the battle began Stark 
called out to his men, " There are the red-coats. Before 
night they are ours, or Molly Stark is a widow." And he 
meant what he said ; before night he had six hundred pris- 
oners and the rest of the British were retreating in dismay. 

Surrender of Burgoyne. — It was not long before Bur- 
goyne, the British commander, found that he had led his 
men into a trap from which he could not get them out. He 
had gone so far south that he could not return, nor could 
he march any farther onward. The Americans were every- 
where around him. His army was short of food, and he 
did not dare to send out parties in search of it, for fear they 
would be captured. He made two fierce attacks on the 
American earthworks, but could not take them. Finally 
he had to surrender his whole army to the Americans. 
This took place at Saratoga, October 17, 1777. It was one 
of the most important events of the war, and had a wonder- 
ful effect on the spirits of the Americans and on the feelings 
of the people of Europe. It was, in fact, the turning-point 
of the war. 



136 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



The Treaty with France. — The next year France made a 
treaty with America and sent over a large fleet to help in 
the war. This fleet did little in the way of ser\nce, but it 
gave hope to the Americans, while its presence discouraged 
the English. Their government now offered to do away 
with all the laws to wliich the Americans objected, if they 
would lay down their arms and surrender. This offer came 
too late. The Americans had determined to be free, and 
nothing less would satisfy them now. 

The Retreat from Philadelphia. — In 1778 the British in 
Philadelphia began to fear that if they stayed there much 
longer they might be caught in as bad a trap as Burgoyne 
had been. The Americans were gathering around them, and 
there was danger that the Delaware might be closed against 
their ships. So they started on a 
hasty march across New Jersey to New 
York. Washington followed them, 
fought with them, and captured some 
of them, but the main army got safely 
to New York. 

Mad Anthony "Wayne. — During 
1778 and 1779 there was not much 
done. A British fleet sailed south and 
took the city of Savannah. This was 
the first victory the British had gained 
in the Southern States. In the North the Americans were 
victorious in one important fight. General Wayne, or 
" Mad Anthony Wayne," as he was afterwards called, made 
a sudden attack on Stony Point, a fort on the Hudson 
River. He took it with the ba^^onet, without firing a shot, 
and captured some very valuable stores. 

The Massacre of Wyoming. — One of the most dreadful 
events of the war took place in the summer of 1778. A 




ANTHONY WAYNE. 



THE UNITED STATES. 



137 



band of Indians, British, and tories made an attack on the 
beautiful Valley of Wyoming, in JsTorthern Pennsylvania. 
They took the fort, which had in it only old men, women, 
and children, and killed them all without mercy. The 
whole settlement was destroyed, and few of the inhabitants 
escaped the cruel tomahawk. 

Captain Paul Jones. — One great battle took place on the 
sea. Paul Jones, a brave American captain, sailed with a 
few ships all round the 
coast of England, and 
kept the whole island in 
alarm. At length he 
met a British war ves- 
sel, the Serapis. His 
ship was called the Bon- 
homme Pichard. The 
fight that followed was 
one of the most desper- 
ate that ever took place 
on the sea. The Bon- 
horame Richard was set 

on fire, and was so full of cannon-ball holes that it began 
to sink, but Paul Jones fought on. In the end the British 
surrendered. Captain Jones placed his men on board the 
Serapis and sailed away in triumph, leaving his own vessel 
to sink. There was no surrender in Captain Paul Jones, 
and he is looked upon as one of the bravest men that ever 
sailed the seas. 

The Treason of Arnold. — In 1780 the war was nearly all 
in the South. Only one important event took place in the 
North. Benedict Arnold, an American general of great 
skill and courage, but of a sullen temper, became angry 
because he thought that he had not been fairly treated, and 




THE BONHOMIsre RICHARD AND THE SERAPLS. 



138 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

that other men had received the honor which he believed to 
be due to him. His discontent became so great in the end 
that he determined to turn traitor to his country. So he 
asked Washington to give him command of West Point, a 
strong fort on the Hudson River. As soon as he got hold 
of it he laid plans to surrender it to the British. 

The Capture of Andre. — Major Andre, a young British 
oflicer, was sent to consult with him. On his way back to 
New York, in disguise, Andre was taken prisoner by some 
Americans. They searched him, and in his stocking they 
found papers which told what his business had been. Arnold 
escaped in a boat to a British war vessel in the river, but 
he did not succeed in giving the fort to the British. Every 
one felt pity for Major Andre, who was a line young man ; 
but he had been taken as a spy, and he was hanged as a spy. 

The South Carolina Partisans. — During 1780 and 1781 
the war was mostly in the South. The British captured 
Charleston, and soon had all South Carolina and Georgia in 
their hands. For a while there was no army to fight them ; 
but some brave and bold men — Marion, Sumter, and others — 
got small bodies of soldiers together, and gave the British 
no end of trouble. They hid in the swamps, and attacked 
every small body of British soldiers they could meet. 
Marion was called the " Swamp Fox." The British thought 
it was very cowardly in him that he would not come out 
into the open field " to fight like an officer and a gentle- 
man." But when the time came they found him as brave in 
the open field as he had been in the swamps. 

Generals Greene and Cornwallis. — In 1781, General 
Greene took command of the army in the South. He was 
a very skilful ofiicer, fought the British at every opportunity, 
and even when he was beaten he managed so that they got 
no good from their victorv. At last General Cornwallis, 



THE UNITED STATES. 139 

who commanded the British army in the South, marched 
north to Virginia. Benedict Arnold, the traitor, was there 
with a British force, doing all the damage he could. 

The Surrender of Cornwallis. — Cornwallis made York- 
town his head-quarters. Here he threw up earthworks, 
and waited for help from New York. Washington, who 
had been pretending that he was going to attack New York, 
now saw his chance, and marched south with the greatest 
speed. At the same time a French fleet sailed into York 
River to keep off any British ships that might come from 
New York. Very soon Cornwallis found that his army was 
surrounded, while cannon-balls were battering his works to 
pieces. He made an attempt to escape, but did not succeed, 
and was forced to surrender. This event took place on the 
19th of October, 1781. 

The Treaty of Peace. — It was the last event of the war. 
There was no more fighting, and America was free. Two 
years afterwards a treaty of peace was signed, in which Eng- 
land acknowledged the freedom of America. From that 
time forward the American people have taken their place 
among the nations of mankind, under the title of " The 
United States of America," — a title which now belongs to 
one of the greatest nations upon the earth. 

IV.— THE PEOPLE AND THE COUNTKY. 

The People and their "Ways. — What kind of a nation 
was it that was made by the Declaration of Independence ? 
How many people were in it, and what were their modes of 
life ? That is what we have next to consider. At the time 
of the Revolution, America was very different from what it 
had been a hundred years before, and very different from 
what it had become a hundred years after. So this is a 



140 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

good resting-point, where we can stop and take a look at tlie 
people, and see bow they lived and what they were doing. 

The Population of America. — "We cannot say just how 
many people there were in America at that time, but there 
were more than two millions, possibly two and a half mil- 
lions. This was a small population for a country of such 
size, extending fifteen hundred miles along the sea-coast 
and for some distance back into the interior. But this ter- 
ritory was very thinly settled. Even along the sea-coast the 
greater part of it was a wilderness, mostly covered with 
forest trees. The towns Avere small and far apart, and the 
largest cities had not more than twenty thousand inhabitants. 
The people in those days thought that New York and Phila- 
delphia were important cities, but now we would look on 
them as only good-sized country towns. 

The State of the Interior. — Few of the settlements ex- 
tended far back from the sea-coast, or from the great rivers. 
In New York most of the settlers kept near to the Hudson ; 
in Pennsylvania they did not go far from the Delaware. 
The back country was yet in great part covered by forests, 
and was the home of the Indians and of white hunters. In 
the South there were more people. In Virginia and the 
Carolinas they had gone much farther back from the coast. 
Daniel Boone, a bold and daring hunter, had led a party 
over the mountains into Kentucky. Some others had gone 
to Tennessee. But these few men had to live with rifle in 
hand, for their lives were every minute in danger. Daniel 
Boone had many adventures with the Indians, but he es- 
caped all peril and lived to be an old man. 

Whence the People came. — The people of America had 
come from many countries of Europe. There were Ger- 
mans in Pennsylvania and Dutch in New York. Along the 
Delaware there were Swedes, and in parts of the South there 



THE UNITED STATES. 141 

were settlements of French and of Highlanders from Scot- 
land. But most of the people were of English descent, and 
the others by degrees took up the language and the ways of 
the English, so that in time all these unlike people grew 
together into one nation. 

The Farming- Population. — Most of the people of Amer- 
ica were farmers. In those days there were none of the 
great factories and workshops which we now see almost 
everywhere. The soil was rich and gave plentiful crops, and 
there might be seen fine farm-houses, large barns full of corn, 
wheat, and hay, and great flocks of sheep and cattle in the 
fields. New England and the Middle colonies were fixmous 
for sheep and corn. Nearly everything was done at home. 
Wliile the men worked in the fields, the women spun wool 
and flax and made most of the clothing for the family. The 
farmer had to be a mechanic also. He made most of the 
things he used. Even the nails he needed were hammered 
out by him during the winter. The children were kept busy, 
too, though there were schools where they could get some 
little education. 

Agriculture of the South. — In the South agriculture was 
also the principal business of the country. Here the land 
was divided into great plantations, and large crops of 
tobacco, rice, sugar, etc., were raised. Much tar and pitch 
were made in North Carolina. These were sent to Europe 
and sold or exchanged for other goods, and the people of 
that section grew rich. We have already told how the 
planters and their slaves lived on these great plantations. 

New Eng-land Commerce. — But the people of America 
were not all farmers. Many of them built ships and en- 
gaged in commerce. Long before the war the cities of 
Boston, New York, and Philadelphia had a large trade. 
Many ships came and went between these cities and Eng- 



142 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



land, and some went to France and Spain to bring back 
cargoes of wine and silks. This was against the English 




THE OLD-TIiME SPINNING-WHEEL. 



law, but the people thought this law unjust and did not hesi- 
tate to break it. Vessels were built in Boston and sent to 



THE UNITED STATES. 143 

the West Indies, where the}- were traded off for rum and 
sugar, for which articles there was much demand in those 
days. Many more were sent to England and sold there. 
As early as 1763, N^ew England had a thousand ships in its 
trade, besides the vessels of the hardy fishermen of the 
coast. Many of these ships were sent in search of whales, 
which were then far more plentiful than now. 

Manufacturing- Industry. — There was not much manu- 
facturing done in America, The laws of England had for- 
bidden the people to make goods for themselves. They 
were watched closely, yet they managed to make some 
things. In ]^ew England there were a few mills for working 
iron. Hats were made of furs. In Pennsylvania very good 
leather was made. But the merchants of England did all 
they could to put a stop to this, and to make the Americans 
buy everything from them. 

Of course they had to build their own houses, and to do 
many things which could not be done for them across the 
ocean. And after the Revolution they quickly began to do 
many other things for themselves, so that the commerce and 
manufactures of America increased very rapidly. There 
were several newspapers printed, but they were very small 
compared with those we see to-day. The first newspaper in 
America was The Neios Lette)% which was started in Boston 
in 1704. In 1775 each of the cities of Boston, ISTew York, 
and Philadelphia had four newspapers. 

Travel in America. — I^ot much can be said for the cities 
of that period. jSIany of the great cities of to-day were 
then small villages, or were still forest land. Boston had less 
than eighteen thousand people; ISTew York over twenty 
thousand, and Philadelphia over thirty thousand. Balti- 
more and Charleston were much the largest cities in the 
South, their populations being from twelve to fifteen thou- 



144 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



sand each. To travel from city to city was no easy task. 
There were some good roads in the North, but in the South 
the roads were very poor. In winter and spring most of 
the roads were little more than a series of mud-holes. The 
fastest stage-coach between New York and Philadelphia 
took two days for the trip, and it was a long and tiresome 
journey from Boston to New York. Therefore the people 




OLD TOLL-GATE. 



of the different colonies had very 
little to do with one another. There is more travel in a 
day now than there was in a year then. 

The Condition of the Cities. — There were some handsome 
houses in the cities, but not many. In New York trees 
w^ere planted before the houses, and there were railings on 
the roofs, so that people could sit there on summer evenings 
to enjoy the cool air. There were lamps in the streets. 
Broadway was thought a splendid avenue, though it was 
not very long and soon ended in the open country. 

Philadelphia was then the most important city in the 



THE UNITED STATES. 145 

country. It had been laid out by "William Penn with broad 
and regular streets, while those of ITew York and Boston 
were crooked and narrow. Yet, much as it was spoken of 
in that day, it was a mere dwarf of a city compared with 
the present Philadelphia, and extended but a short distance 
back from the banks of the Delaware. 

Equality and Habits of the People. — There were no men 
of great riches in those days. Very few men in the country 
had ten thousand dollars a year to spend. Most of the 
people were nearly equal in wealth. There was little poverty 
and little riches. The people were simple in their manners, 
and did not live expensively. One of their worst faults was 
their fondness for liquor. They drank much more than 
people do now, and drunkenness was very common. 

Extent of the United States. — The country which the 
people had won for tliemselves by their hard fight with 
England was much smaller than the United States of our 
present maps. Canada was held by England. Its people 
had shown no wish to be free. In the South, Florida be- 
longed to Spain ; but Florida then reached farther north 
than, it does now, and had a strip of land fifty miles wide 
extending along the Gulf of Mexico to the Mississippi River, 
so that it cut off the United States from the Gulf. And all 
the vast country that lies west of this river belonged to 
Spain. The United States of that day lay between the Mis- 
sissippi River on the west and the Atlantic Ocean on the 
east, and between Canada on the north and Florida on the 
south. It was a great country then. It has grown to be a 
much greater country since. 

The States of the Union. — This country was divided into 
tliirteen States. These were the same as the States which 
now lie along or near the Atlantic, except Maine and Ver- 
mont, which did not become States till afterwards. They 

10 



146 ^^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

were called the United States of America, but they were 
not very closely united. Each of them was almost like a 
separate nation, for Congress had very little power over 
them. They sent some of their wisest men to Philadelphia 
to form part of the Congress which met there, hut they did 
not give them much power or authority. They had to gain 
their freedom first. There would he time enough after- 
wards to form a strong nation out of the several colonies. 



PART IV -QUESTIONS FOR EXAMINATION. 

I. In what ways were the Americans ill used by the English ? What laws 
were passed about their trade ? "What was done about American ships ? 
Were Americans allowed to make goods for themselves? What did the 
English want them to do? Did the Americans obey the new laws? What 
law was passed to stop smuggling ? How did the Americans liice this ? Why 
did the English government wish to tax the Americans ? What reply did the 
Americans make ? What did the government do ? What was the character 
of the Stamp Act ? What did Patrick Henry declare ? How did the people 
receive the Stamp Act ? Who was sent to London to get the Stamp Act 
repealed ? What other taxes were laid ? What was done to make the people 
pay these taxes ? Why were soldiers sent to Boston ? What is meant by the 
" Boston Massacre"? What did the Parliament next do about the taxes? Were 
the Americans willing to pay the tax on tea ? Why not ? How did they 
receive the cargoes of tea? What was done at Boston? What was the Bos- 
ton Port Bill ? Did this frighten the people? What did they do? When 
and where did the "First Continental Congress" meet? What action did 
it take ? 

II. What was the population of the colonies at the time of the disputes 
with England ? What had England done in ten years ? What city was the 
centre of the rebellious feeling? Where had the people collected stores? 
What did General Gage do ? Describe Paul Revere's ride. On what day did 
the soldiers reach Lexington ? What happened there ? What was done at 
Concord ? Describe the retreat from Concord. How did the people of New- 
England receive the news of this fight? What did Ethan Allen and the 
Green Mountain Boys do? Whore did the Americans seek to build a fort? 
On what hill was it built? How were the British received when they tried 
to take the fort ? What was tlie end of the battle ? When did the Second 



THE UNITED STATES. 147 

Continental Congress meet ? Who was made commander-in-chief of the 
army ? How were the British forced to leave Boston ? "What did the 
Americans attempt in Canada, and how did they succeed ? What city was 
attacked by the British fleet ? With what result ? Describe Sergeant Jas- 
per's brave action. What was the purpose of the colonists in the war? 
What new purpose came into their minds? What member of Congress first 
declared that the colonies ought to be free ? Who wrote the Declaration of 
Independence ? When was it adopted ? What eflect did it have on the peo- 
ple ? Wbat did it declare to lovers of liberty? 

III. What did the Declaration of Independence signify to the people? 
Why is the 4th of July kept as a national holiday ? What happened at New 
York ? What did Washington do after the loss of New York ? Describe 
his retreat. How did the people feel ? What did Washington do on Christ- 
mas Eve, 1776? How were the British at Trenton occupied? What took 
place at Trenton ? At Princeton ? What was the effect of these victories in 
xlmerica and Europe ? Where did the British sail to in 1777 ? What was 
the effect of the battle of the Brandy wine? At what other place was there a 
battle? Where did Washington's army pass the winter? What condition 
were the men in ? What other expedition did the British attempt ? What was 
their purpose? Describe the battle of Bennington. What did General 
Stark say to his men ? What sort of a trap did Burgoyne fall into ? What 
was he obliged to do ? Where and when did he surrender his army ? What 
country made a treaty with America in 1778? What did the English now 
ofler to do? How did the Americans receive their offer? What did the 
British army in Philadelphia do in 1778? Why? What did Washington 
do ? What fort did Anthony Wayne attack ? How did he take it ? What 
happened in the Valley of Wyoming ? What did Captain Paul Jones do? 
What was the name of his ship ? What English frigate did he meet ? 
Describe the sea-fight that followed. Where did the fighting take place in 
1780? What did General Arnold determine to do ? What fort did he get 
command of? What happened to Major Andre? Why was he hung? 
What Southern city did the British capture ? What leaders fought them in 
South Carolina? What was their mode of fighting? What did the British 
think of it? Who took command of the Southern army in 1781 ? Who 
commanded the British army ? What success did General Greene have ? 
Where did Cornwallis go ? What did Washington do ? What fleet came to 
help him? What happened to the army of Cornwallis ? When did he sur- 
render ? Was there any more fighting ? When was the treaty of peace 
signed ? What was the new nation named ? 

IV. What was the population of America after the Revolution ? How 
Uirge was the country ? How thickly was it settled ? What was the size of 



148 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

the largest cities ? Where were the settlers mostly collected ? What was the 
condition of the interior? What was the state of the Southern population? 
What great hunter had gone to Kentucky ? What was the character of his 
life there ? From what countries had the people of America come ? In what 
business were most of them engaged ? What crops were raised ? What did 
the women do ? What did the farmers do at home ? What was raised in the 
South ? Where were these crops sold ? Describe the shipping trade of the 
colonies. How many ships had New England in 1763? What were these 
used for ? AVas there much manufacturing ? What things were made ? 
What was the name of the first newspaper ? How many newspapers were 
there in the principal cities in 1775 ? Tell the size of the difterent cities. 
What is said about travelling ? What kind of a city was New York ? 
What was Philadelphia like? What was the condition of the people? 
What bad habit had they? What was the extent of the United States? 
What were its boundaries ? How many States were there ? Were they 
closely united ? Did Congress then have much power? 



THE UNITED STATES. 149 



PART V. 

THE FIRST HALF-CENTURY OF THE REPUBLIC. 
I.— THE MAKING OF THE GOVEKNMENT. 

After the "War. — At the end of the Revokition the people 
of America were in a condition of poverty and misery. 
Business was at a stand-still, there was very little money, 
and not much of anything else useful. The country owed 
a great debt and had little to pay it with. The paper money 
with which the soldiers had been paid had lost its value, 
and nobody would take it for goods. The people were very 
poor, with their farms ruined and many of their towns 
destroyed. Some of them were so desperate that they 
declared they would pay no debts or taxes. Two thousand 
such men in Massachusetts, led by a man named Daniel 
Shays, marched out with their arms and defied the govern- 
ment. The State had some trouble to make them submit. 

Yet this distress could not long continue. The country 
only needed a little time to be all right again. It still had its 
soil, its mines, its ships, and its industrious inhabitants, and 
these were enough to make any countr}^ rich. England 
could no longer tell the people where they should trade or 
what they should make, or force them to pay taxes to sup- 
port her government. They were free now to work for and 
to govern themselves, and that was worth all it had cost. 

The Patriotism of Washington. — Washington was looked 
upon by every one as the great man of the country. The 



150 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 




WASHINGTON. 



soldiers almost worshipped him. He could not go anywhere 
without crowds gathering to see him. He might have made 
himself a king if he had done what some of his friends 
wished. But lie was too great a lover of his country for 
that, and would not take from America 
the liberty which he had done so much 
to gain. He went back to his home at 
Mount Vernon, in Virginia, and became 
a simple farmer again. This was a noble 
act. Few men in Washington's position 
would have given up the power which 
was in his hands. All the world has 
praised him since as one of the greatest 
of patriots. 

The Constitutional Convention. — 
There was one work of great importance to be done before 
the country could prosper. Congress had hardly any power. 
It was made up of delegates from the States, but these 
States kept most of the power in their own hands. Con- 
gress could pass laws, but the States need not obey them 
unless they chose. Each State soon began to act as if it 
was an independent nation. Money was asked for by Con- 
gress to pay the interest on the debt, but very little of it 
was given, and hardly anything was done for the support of 
the government. A change of some kind had to be made, 
or the Union of the States would be broken, and there 
would be thirteen nations instead of one. This was seen 
by all the wise men of the country, — by Washington, Hamil- 
ton, Franklin, and others, — and steps were taken for a con- 
vention of delegates, which met at Philadelphia, in May, 
1787, to try and form a stronger government. 

Among these delegates were many learned and able men. 
For four months they talked over the condition of the 



THE UNITED STATES. 



151 



country, and considered what had best be done, and at the 
end of that time they had formed a plan of government 
very well suited to the needs of the country. This plan is 
what we have in the Constitution of the United States, that 
great document which forms the foundation of our govern- 
ment, and which has done much to make the United States 
so great and strong a nation. 

The New Government. — When the Convention had fin- 
ished its work, what had it done ? Let us see. There were 
still thirteen States, each of 
which had the right to take 
care of its own aflairs ; but 
they were all combined 
under one general govern- 
ment, which had much 
power given to it. This 
government had the right 
to form and control an 
army and navy, to make 
treaties with other nations, 
and to declare war if neces- 
sary. It was to coin the 
money of the country, to 
manage the post-offices, to lay taxes on the people, to regu- 
late commerce with foreign countries, and to make laws for 
the good of the whole nation. No State had any longer 
the power to do these things for itself, though each could 
make laws which did not interfere with the rights of any 
other State or of the government of the United States. 

The government was to consist of three bodies : one to 
make the laws, one to decide if they agreed with the Con,- 
stitution, and one to see that they were put into effect. The 
first of these — the law-making body — is called the Congress 




CARPENTERS' HALL, PHILADELPHIA, WHERE 
THE FIRST COLONIAL CONGRESS MET. 



152 -4iV ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

of the United States. It is divided into two parts, — the 
House of Representatives, whose members are elected by 
the people, and the Senate, whose members are elected by 
the State governments. The first of these is expected to 
look after the good of the whole people ; the second, to at- 
tend to the interests of the States. But the interests of the 
people and of the States are very much the same, and there 
is little difference between the duties of the Senate and those 
of the House of Representatives. 

The second body of the government is called the Supreme 
Court. It is made up of a number of learned judges, whose 
duty it is to examine, if necessary, all the laws passed in the 
country, and decide if they agree with the Constitution. 
If they do not agree they cease to be laws. Every law. 
either of Congress or of the States, must agree with the 
Constitution of the United States. 

The third body of the government consists of a President, 
with a Vice-President to take his place if he should die, and 
certain officers known as cabinet officers, A\ath whom he can 
consult. It is the duty of the President to execute, or put 
into force, the laws passed by Congress. If he does not 
approve of these acts of Congress he can veto them, or refuse 
to sign them. They cannot become laws if he does not 
sign them, unless two-thirds of the members of Congress 
vote for them again. The President takes the place of the 
kings and emperors of foreign countries, but he has less 
power than some of them. He can only carry out the laws. 
He has nothing to do with making them, except that he 
need not sign any law W'hich he does not like. 

"Washington as President. — As soon as the Constitution 
was formed and adopted by the States a President had to be 
chosen. Washington was the only man thought of for this 
liiii-h office. He became President in 1789. It was decided 



THE UNITED STATES. 



163 



that New York should be the seat of government, and Con- 
gress was asked to meet there on the 4th of March of that 
year. 

There was much to be done. There was a heavy debt to 
be paid, many laws to be passed, courts to be set up, taxes 
to be laid, and the people had to gain confidence in the gov- 
ernment before business could go on properly. All this was 




THE CAPITOL AT WASHINGTON. 



done, everybody went to work, and it was not long before 
America was richer and happier than it had ever been before. 
There were troubles, it is true. A tax had been laid on 
whiskey, and a mob in Western Pennsylvania refused to 
pay it. But Washington called out an army, and taught 
these people that the government intended to carry out its 
laws. There were difficulties also with England, Spain, 
and France, but they were all settled without going to war. 
Washington was President for eight years. The seat of 
government was removed from New York to Philadelphia 



154 A^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

in 1790, and to the new city of Washington in 1800. The 
people of the old States were now moving rapidly to the 
West. They no longer felt it necessary to keep near to the 
sea-coast, and they drove back the Indians as they went, 
and settled in the country west of the mountains. 

Vermont, Kentucky, and Tennessee soon became States. 
The settlers in Ohio had great trouble with the Indians, 
and much fighting took place ; but the hostile tribes were at 
last defeated by General Wayne, and after that they con- 
tinued peacefiil for many years. 

Adams and Jefferson, — In 1797, John Adams was made 
President. At that time the people had become divided 
into two political parties, called Republicans and Federalists. 
Thomas Jefl:erson, the writer of the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence, was the leader of the Republicans, or the Dem- 
ocrats as they were afterwards called, and was elected 
President in 1801. He held the office for eight years. The 
principal difference between these parties was that the Fed- 
eralists wanted a strong central government and the Repub- 
licans were afraid that too much power would be taken 
from the States. 

Louisiana purchased. — After 1800 the country became 
very prosperous. Commerce grew quite active, and so much 
money came in to the government that the debt was rapidly 
being paid. Up to this time the United States only 
extended as far as the Mississippi River. The great country 
west of that river belonged to Spain. In 1800, Napoleon 
gained this immense territory from Spain for France. But 
he was at war with England and was afraid it would be taken 
from him, so he sold it to the United States in 1803 for fifteen 
million dollars. Since that time the United States has ex- 
tended as far west as the Pacific Ocean. The land bought 
by Jefferson has increased wonderfully in value since then. 



THE UNITED STATES. 155 

II.— THE SECOND WAR WITH GREAT BRITAIN. 

Interference with American Commerce, — America bad 
many vessels on the ocean, and certain nations of Europe 
thought they could interfere with these as much as they 
pleased. France and England were at war, and both of them 
meddled with American commerce, which had become very 
great on account of the wars in Europe. In fact, the coun- 
try came very near going to war with France. An army 
was raised and vessels were sent to sea, where some fighting 
took place with French ships of war. But the matter was 
settled and the two countries became friends again. 

War with Tripoli. — The next difiiculty was with Tripoli, a 
country in the north of Africa. The people of this country 
were not civilized, and many of them were pirates, who 
spent their time in capturing the vessels of other nations. 
Merchant ships and their cargoes were taken by the pirates 
and all on board were sold as slaves. Some of the nations 
of Europe paid these pirates to let their ships alone. The 
United States did so too for a while, but wdien Jefferson 
became President he decided tliat this payment must stop. 
So a fleet of war vessels was sent out to punish the pirates. 

One of these war ships, the Philadelphia, ran aground 
and was seized by the Tripolitans. A brave young oflicer. 
Lieutenant Decatur, determined that they should not keep 
her ; so he sailed into the harbor in a little vessel with some 
American sailors, most of whom were hidden from sight. 
The people on the frigate thought it was one of their own 
vessels, till it ran against the Philadelphia, when the sailors 
sprang on board, attacked the pirates, drove them into the 
sea, and set the frigate on fire, as there was no time to get 
her under sail. Then the gallant Decatur sailed away 
without heed to the cannon-balls which all the forts were 



156 ^N ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

firing at him. After four years of war the ruler of Tripoli 
was glad to agree to let the merchant vessels of the United 
States alone. 

The Difficulty with England. — But England would not 
let them alone. That country was still at war with France, 
and wanted all the men she could get for her army and navy. 
So she claimed the right to stop any American vessel at sea 
and take from it every man who had been born in England. 
And in doing this a good many were taken who had not 
been born in England, but were true Americans. 

This was not all. England said that the ships of no for- 
eign nation should trade with France, and France said the 
same for England. The United States had a large trade with 
both countries, for it carried goods for both while they were 
at war. Many American vessels were taken, and this coun- 
try was almost as bad off as if it had been at war itself, 
while its commerce was nearly ruined. 

To put a stop to this state of affairs Congress passed what 
was called the Embargo Act, which forbade any American 
ships to leave port with goods for foreign countries. It was 
thought that this would so injure France and England, who 
needed American goods, that they would consent to let our 
vessels alone. It did injure them, but it injured the United 
States still more. No ocean business at all was now done. 
The people of the country at length became so dissatisfied 
and angry that war was declared against England, which had 
continued to stop our vessels on the ocean and take men 
from them. British agents had also gone among the Indians 
of the North-west and incited them to take up arms against 
the Americans. An Indian war took place, in which Te- 
cumseh, the Indian chief, was defeated by General Harrison. 
All this made the Americans very bitter against England, 
and they decided to fight again for their rights. 



THE UNITED STATES. 157 

The Character of the War. — The war that followed was 
not so interesting nor so important as the war of the Revo- 
lution. There was nothing of much value gained by either 
party, while both of them lost much. England lost far more 
than she had gained by robbing our merchant vessels, and 
America met with some severe losses. But when a great 
nation like England acts like a pirate, and begins to rob the 
vessels of another nation of men and goods, war becomes 
necessary, '^o people of any spirit would long bear such 
treatment. The United States had endured it for years 
because it felt too poor and weak to combat with England, 
which was one of the richest and strongest countries of 
Europe. The Embargo Act and other means had been tried, 
and when they were found useless war was declared. 

The Seat of War. — James Madison was now President. 
He had taken his seat in 1809 and remained President for 
eight years. The war began in 1812 and lasted to the end 
of 1814. It was fought in America and on the ocean. The 
United States did not send any soldiers to England. It 
had no ships and no trained troops for this purpose. But an 
effort was made to take Canada from England, and the 
greater part of the war took place along the line between 
the United States and Canada. 

The Strength of the two Nations. — The United States 
was much stronger than it had been at the time of the 
Revolution. There were now more than seven millions of 
people in the country ; but there were no trained soldiers 
and few able officers, while England had a large army and 
many generals of experience. England was also much 
stronger on the ocean. She had a thousand ships of war, 
while America had not more than a dozen, none of them 
very large. Yet all through the war America gained vic- 
tories on the water, while many battles were lost on the land. 



158 ^^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Perry's Victory. — For over a year armies were sent into 
Canada, but nothing was gained, while the British got pos- 
session of Michigan, and Ohio was in danger. There was a 
British fleet on Lake Erie, and it was feared that they would 
use it to land soldiers on the American shores of that lake. 
An active young officer. Captain Oliver Perr^^ was sent to 
Lake Erie to see what could be done to prevent this. He at 
once went to work to cut down trees, hew them into shape, 
and build ships. In a very short time he had a fleet of small 
vessels, and sailed out to meet the British ships. 

The two fleets met on the 10th of September, 1813. A 
fierce battle followed, in which both sides fought with great 
courage, but the British were beaten and forced to surrender. 
During the fight the ship which Captain Perry commanded 
was shot so full of holes that it was ready to sink. So the 
gallant young officer took his flag and rowed in an open 
boat to another ship. The British vessels fired at him as he 
went, but he escaped unharmed. After the victory he sent 
to General Harrison this brief despatch : " We have met 
the enemy, and they are ours." 

American Victories. — As soon as General Harrison re- 
ceived this despatch he marched on the enemy, and came 
up with tliem on the River Thames, in Canada. Here the 
British were defeated and most of them taken prisoners, 
while Tecumseh, the celebrated Indian chief, was killed. 
This victory drove the British out of Michigan. The next 
year General Winfield Scott won two victories in Canada, 
and in the same year there was a naval battle on Lake 
Champlain, where the English had a strong fleet. Com- 
modore McDonough commanded the American fleet and 
gained a complete victory. After that the British made no 
effort to invade the United States from Canada. 

The Work of the Navy. — On the ocean the Americans 



THE UNITED STATES. 159 

were victorious in nearly every engagement. The first 
battle was between the American ship Constitution and the 
British ship Guerriere. They fought for two hours, at the 
end of which time the Guerriere was so full of cannon-ball 
holes that she was sinking and had to surrender. This 
victory made a great sensation in Europe and America. 
The British had long been masters of th-e ocean, and it was 
thought their ships could not be beaten. Before the end 
of the war American ships had gained many more brilliant 
victories over the war vessels of Great Britain. They had 
shown to the world that England was no longer " mistress 
of the seas." 

The Burning- of Washington. — In 1814 the British army 
did a disgraceful deed. There was a fleet which had done 
much damage along the coast, and this sailed up Chesapeake 
Bay and landed an army which marched on Washington. 
The city was very poorly defended, and the British took 
possession of it. They burned the Capitol and other public 
buildings, and many private houses, and then marched out 
again. This has always been looked on as a shameful act. The 
same fleet made an attack on Baltimore, but was driven off. 

The Battle of New Orleans. — The success of the British 
at Washington was followed by a defeat at New Orleans. 
A strong force was landed and marched on this city, which 
there was no American army to defend. But there was a 
brave and skilful officer. General Andrew Jackson, and he 
soon raised himself an army. He had been fighting with 
the Creek Indians in Alabama, who had made war on the 
whites. These savages he completely defeated. When he 
saw what the British intended he collected all the men he 
could. Most of them had never seen a battle, but they all 
knew how to use a rifle, and many of them were old hunters 
and skilful marksmen. 



160 



AX ELEMENTARY HISTORV OF 



Both armies built breastworks. Those of the British 
were made of sugar hogsheads, and those of the Americans 
of cotton bales. But these were soon battered down and 
set on fire by the cannon-shot, and then Jackson built earth- 
works out of the black mud of the river bank. For some 




•^ i:- 'if 



'~^^rf^" ^ 



BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS. 



time they fought at a distance with cannon, and then the 
British determined to take the American works by storm. 

They had a large army of veteran soldiers, while the 
Americans were militia; but these backwoods riflemen 
wasted no bullets. Every time that a rifle was fired an 
enemy fell; and they were well protected by their mud 
walls. On the 8th of January, 1815, the British advanced 



THE UNITED STATES. 161 

to the attack. They came on boldly, but could not stand 
the terrible fire of the American riflemen and soon fell 
back. Again they advanced, and once more they fell dead 
by hundreds. This was enough. The battle had lasted 
only half an hour before the British army was in full re- 
treat, having lost its commander, General Pakenham, and 
more than two thousand men, while only eight of the 
Americans were killed. 

The Treaty of Peace. — The war was at an end before 
this battle was fought, though the armies at New Orleans 
did not know it. A treaty of peace had been signed ; but 
those were not the days of railroads and telegraphs, and it 
took as many weeks then as it does seconds now to get news 
from New York to New Orleans. So those two thousand 
men lost their lives for nothing. 

The Necessity for Peace. — The war did not end any too 
soon. There was nothing to fight for any longer, and 
America was suffering greatly. England had ended the 
war which had been kept up for many years with France, 
and wanted no more sailors or goods from American ships. 
There was an immense army, a great fleet, and abundance 
of money to use against America. America was poor and 
in debt. Her trade was gone, and heavy taxes were laid on 
the people. Some of the States refused to supply any more 
men and money for a war which there was no longer any 
use for. So a treaty of peace was made with the English 
government. 

Industry re-established. — When the news of the treaty 
reached America the whole country was glad. " Peace ! 
peace !" was the shout in the streets. Some of the cities 
were illuminated. At once business started up. Before 
night of that day shipwrights were at work on the merchant 
ships, making them ready for sea. Sailors were engaged, 

11 



162 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

cargoes loaded, and very soon American sails were spread 
again upon the seas, while at home the joyful soldiers 
dropped the sword and the musket and seized the plough- 
handle and the hammer, and the cheerful sounds of industry 
were heard once more throughout the land. 

III.— AFTER THE WAR. 

The Barbary States. — After the war affairs in America 
went on very quietly for many years. There was some more 
trouble with the pirates of Northern Africa, who again 
interfered with American commerce. But Commodore 
Decatur, the brave sailor who had burnt the Philadelphia, 
went out with a fleet and very soon frightened the piratical 
states. These were the countries of Algiers, Tunis, and 
Tripoli, known as the Barbary States. They have never 
interfered with American vessels since that time. 

Business Activity. — Business grew active again as soon 
as the war was at an end. The farmers sold their crops for 
good prices, the ships found plenty to do, and every one was 
busy except mechanics. During the war many factories had 
been built in America, but after the treaty of peace English 
goods were sent to this country in great quantities, and sold 
so low that the American factories had to sell at a loss or 
else stop working. This set people to talking about a tariff, 
or a tax on foreign goods, so that they could not be sold 
lower than American goods. 

The Era of Good Feeling. — After the war the political dis- 
putes in America died away, and soon there was but one 
political party. People no longer voted for the old Federal 
party, and only the Republican party was left. This party 
was now generally called the Democratic. The period that 
followed has been called " the era of good feeUng," because 



THE UNITED STATES. 163 

there was but the one party, and all the people thought very 
much the same way in politics. James Monroe was elected 
President in 1816, and held the office for the eight years 
from 1817 to 1825. 

"War with Florida. — While Monroe was President there 
were some troubles with the Indians of Florida, and these 
led to very important results. Florida still belonged to 
Spain, and the Spaniards stirred up the Seminole Indians to 
make war on Georgia and Alabama. General Jackson then 
commanded the army in the South. He was of a hasty 
temper, and he quickly marched his men into Florida and 
took possession of the Spanish town of Pensacola. He also 
hung two Englishmen who he said led the Indians. Jack- 
son was blamed for this, but Spain saw 
that she could not keep Florida, so she 
asked the United States to buy it. The 
price asked for it was five million dollars. 
The United States was glad to pay this 
sum, and became owner of Florida in 
1821. 

New States admitted. — The country 
along the Mississippi was now filling up 
with people, and seven new States were ^^^^ ■'^^'''^^• 
formed between 1812 and 1821. These were Louisiana, 
Indiana, Mississippi, Illinois, Alabama, Maine, and Missouri. 
Ohio had become a State in 1802. These, with the thirteen 
original States, and Vermont, Tennessee, and Kentucky, 
which had been admitted before 1800, made the total 
number twenty-four. 

There was a dispute in Congress when Missouri asked to 
be made a State. This dispute was on the question of 
slavery. As this was to become a very important question 
in later years we must say something about it here. In the 




164 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

early clays of America there were slaves in all the colonies ; 
but in 1820 very few slaves were left in the States north of 
Virginia. They were still kept in the South on account of 
their use in the cotton, rice, and tobacco plantations ; but 
a law was passed in 1787 that there should be no slaves in 
the territory north of the Ohio. 

The Missouri Corapromise. — When Missouri asked to be 
made a State there were many slaves there already, and a 
debate arose whether it should be a slave or a free State. 
This was settled by what is called " The Missouri Compro- 
mise." A law was passed which said that Missouri might 
come into the Union as a slave State, but that there should 
be no more slave States in the Western country farther 
north than the southern boundary of Missouri. This set- 
tled all trouble about slave States for twenty-five years. 

Internal Improvements. — As the country was filling up 
so fast with people, something had to be done to make it 
easier to travel and carry goods from one place to another. 
There were steamboats on the rivers, but there were no 
railroads, and tlie carriage roads were very bad. So Con- 
gress began to make good roads in diiFerent directions. 
Canals were also made to carry goods cheaply. The great- 
est of these was the Erie Canal, of New York. This was 
begun in 1817 and finished in 1825. It runs across the 
State from Albany to Bufi:alo, and is of great use in bring- 
ing goods and grain from the West to the Hudson River. 

The Tariff Question. — One more great question arose in 
Congress during this time. This was about a tariff on 
foreign goods. Americans were trying to start factories 
and workshops, and to make articles for their own use ; but 
they had to pay high wages to mechanics, and found that 
they could not sell as low as the English. Therefore the 
manufacturers of the North asked Congress to lay a tax or 



THE UNITED STATES. 165 

duty on foreign goods, so that they could not be sold lower 
than the American. The South did not want this. They 
did not manufacture much, and thought it would be better 
for them to exchange their cotton for the cheap goods of 
England, rather than for the high-priced goods of the ISTorth. 

Thus there were two sides to the question, but the tariff 
party was the stronger, and passed a law in 1816 laying a 
tax or duty on manufactured foreign goods, to protect the 
American manufacturers. It proved very useful, and the 
workshops of America quickly became busy, and have 
continued so from that time to the present. But the ques- 
tion of the tariff has never been settled to please all parties, 
and it is the greatest political question of the present day. 

"Whigs and Democrats. — In 1824, John Quincy Adams 
was elected President by tlie party which was then known 
by the two names of Republican and Democratic. There 
was no other party at that time. The Republican party of 
to-day was formed long afterwards. But while Adams was 
President the one party became divided into two, which 
were afterwards known as the Democratic and the Whig 
parties. It was the tariff and some other questions that 
divided the old party. The Whigs were in favor of high 
tariff and the Democrats of low tariff; the Whigs being 
strongest in the North, where there were most factories, and 
the Democrats in the South, where low-priced goods were 
wanted. 

IV.— THE PKOGKESS OF THE COUNTKY. 

We have now told the story of what took place in the 
political world of America during the fifty years from 
1780 to 1830. But many other things were being done 
during that period. The people were growing more numer- 
ous ; they were gaining new ideas and customs ; new ways 



166 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



of doing things were coming into use ; and much was being 
done that does not belong to political history, but which, for 
all that, is of great importance. It is now our purpose to 
tell something about life and industry in America during 
these fitly years. 

Growth of Population, — The first census of the United 
States was taken in 1790 ; that is to say, the number of 
people were counted, and it was found that there were nearly 
four millions of inhabitants. In 1830 there were nearly 
thirteen millions, — more than three times as many. This 
great increase of people had done much to fill up the new 




THE HOME OF THE PIONEER. 



States in the West. In 1780 the great West was still a wil- 
derness. Daniel Boone had led some settlers into Kentucky 
and others had gone to Tennessee, but elsewhere the people 
had not moved far back from the ocean. There were great 
hardships to be borne by those who went West, and much 
danger from the Indians, and those who loved comfort and 
safety kept in the old settlements along the coast. 

The Pioneers of the North. — But there were many who 
loved adventure more than they did peace and comfort, and 
hundreds of these went out as pioneers into the Avilderness. 
In the region of Kew England and iNew York these trav- 



THE UNITED STATES. 167 

elled with emigrant wagons, making roads through the 
woods as they went. They wouhl clear off the trees and 
cultivate a piece of land for a year or two, and then, as 
others settled near them, they would set out again for a new 
home in the wilderness. It was like a great army slowly 
marching forward and sending pioneers in advance, while 
the main body held on to every foot of land that was oc- 
cupied. The Indians retreated step by step before them. 
They could not repel this army of emigrants. 

Emigration along the Ohio. — Along the Ohio the emi- 
grants went in a diiferent way. They loaded their goods 
and families on boats and floated down the river till they 
found a good place to settle. It was a dangerous journey. 
The Indians would fire on them from the woods on the river 
banks, and many were killed or captured. Afterwards the 
boats were made stronger so that bullets would not pass 
through them, and in some cases they carried small cannon 
to drive off the foe. But for many years the journey down 
the Ohio was a dangerous one. 

But no dangers could keep back the people, and they 
made many settlements along the Ohio River. The first 
houses were built at Cincinnati in 1788, a little more than 
one hundred years ago. The Indians fought with the set- 
tlers, but they were driven back, and soon there were great 
numbers of people along the Ohio and Mississippi, and 
States began to be formed where not many years before 
all had been a wilderness, the home of the red man and of 
wild beasts. 

How People lived. — In those days things were very dif- 
ferent from what they are now, even in the largest cities. 
The streets were dirty and poorly paved, while at night they 
were lighted only by a few oil lamps. There were no gas 
and no matches such as we have now, but a piece of flint 



168 



AN ELEMENTARV HISTORV OF 



and steel and some tinder were used to make a liglit. Water 
had to be carried from the pump, and wood was used for 
fires, so that houses were not warmed all through as they 
now are. 

Most of the people lived on farms, for there were fewer 





workshops to bring 
them into the cities. 
Life on the farm was 
very hard. There 
were none of the 
excellent machines 
which farmers have 
now, and the work 
required great labor, 
while most of the 
things that were used 
had to be made at 
home. There were 
very few amusements 
in the country, and hardly any books and newspapers, and 
little time for anything except hard work. 

In the houses there were still great open fireplaces, where 
logs of wood were burned. Tallow candles were used to 
light the rooms, while most of the people wore clothes of 
homespun, — that is, of cloth made at home of thread spun 



OLD FARM-HOUSE AND INTERIOR. 



THE UNITED STATES. 169 

on the spinning-wheel and woven on the hand-loom. Hunt- 
ing and fishing were the principal amusements of the men, 
and the gun and the fishing-rod could be seen in every 
house. 

Customs of the Rich. — But the rich people in the cities 
lived much better than the farmers and made a great deal 
more show. This class of people dressed more splendidly 
than they do now. The gentlemen wore white satin vests 
and white silk stockings, with velvet or broadcloth coats ; 
while the ladies wore beautiful silks and satins, and had 
their hair dressed with powder and pomatum and raised 
like a tower above the head. All gentlemen took snuff", and 
to offer the snufif-box was considered a necessary act of 
politeness. 

Fine balls were given at which there was much formality, 
and also musical concerts, but the theatre had made no great 
progress. There were much pomp and show at President 
Washington's receptions : the kings of Europe made little 
more display. But this came to an end after Jefferson be- 
came President. He dressed plainly and did away with all 
ceremony. 

The Cotton-Gin. — There was one thing that happened at 
this time of which we must speak. Among the plants 
which had been early planted in the Southern colonies was 
the cotton-plant. This plant has its seeds covered with a 
fine white down, or fibre, which can be spun into thread and 
made into cloth. Cotton grew in other parts of the world 
and was used for this purpose. The people of the South 
raised some of it, but it took so much time and trouble to 
get the seeds out of the cotton that they could not make it 
pay. 

In 1792 a young man from Massachusetts, named Eli 
Whitney, went to Georgia to teach while he studied law. 



170 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



One day he was asked if he could not make a machine that 
would separate the seed from the fibre. He began to experi- 
ment, and soon invented a machine which did this work 
very well. It was called the cotton-gin. It worked so well 
that it was soon in use wherever the plant was raised, and 
before many years tlie cultivation of cotton became a great 
industry. American cotton was used in all parts of the 
civilized world, and the South grew very rich from the vast 
quantities of this useful product that were raised and sold. 
The Steamboat invented. — Other inventions were made, 
one of the most important being the steamboat. Several 

persons tried this. There 
was one built by James 
Rumsey in 1784, and an- 
other afterwards by John 
Fitch, which ran for some 
time on the Delaware. But 
the first successful steam- 
boat was built by Robert 
Fulton in 1807. This was 
tried on the Hudson, and 
when people saw it moving 
at five miles an hour against 
wind and tide they knew 
that a great invention had 
been made. As it went up 
the river to Albany the sailors on other vessels were scared 
to see this monster sending clouds of smoke and showers 
of sparks into the air, and making a great noise with its 
paddles and machiner3^ Some of them hid below the 
deck, and others fell on their knees and prayed for safety. 
But before long steamboats were running on all the rivers 
and proved of the greatest use. 




FULTON'S STEAMBOAT. (THE CLERMONT.) 



THE UNITED STATES. 



171 



Before the time of steamboats it was not easy to travel on 
the Western rivers. Boats v^^ould float down them all the 
way to N'ew Orleans, but it was hard work to row them 
back against the strong current. So they were broken up 
and sold for lumber, and the sailors walked or rode back 
along the river bank. But after steamboats were put on 




A MODEKN STEAMSHIP. 



the rivers there was no trouble in moving up as well as 
down. In 1819 the first steamship crossed the Atlantic. It 
was named the Savannah. 

The Railroad introduced. — There was another great in- 
vention soon to come into use. This was the railroad. The 
first railroad in America is said to have been one built in 
1827 at Quincy, Massachusetts. It was only three miles 
long, and the cars were drawn by horses, and carried stone 
from the quarries to the wharves. But about this time the 
locomotive was invented in England by George Stephenson. 
In 1828 the locomotive was tried in America. Farmers did 
not like it at first. They thought it would scare their 
animals, and that the wool of the sheep would be made 
black by the smoke, so that it could not be sold. But none 



172 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

of these things happened, and soon railroads were being 
built in various directions. Xothing else has done so much 
to make a great country of America. 

La Fayette visits America. — In 1824, La Fayette came 
to America. He was a French nobleman who had fought 
for the Americans during the Revolution, and was much 
liked by General Washington. He was now sixty-eight 
years old. He found a wonderful change in the country. 
When he had been here before there was only a thin line 
of settlements along the Atlantic coast. Now he would 
have had to travel a thousand miles from the ocean to visit 
all the States. He was received with joyful greetings by all 
the people, and wherever he went there were parades and 
processions. When he was ready to go home he was sent 
in a war vessel named the Brandywine, and with a present 
of two hundred thousand dollars in money. There was 
also given him a township of the public lands. 

A Period of Prosperity. — After the war with Great 
Britain the country found itself in a state of great poverty 
and with a heavy debt to pay. But for a while business 
was so good that there was soon more riches in the country 
than there had been before. Tobacco and cotton sold at 
high prices; the ships had plenty to do, and soon gold 
watches began to take the place of silver, silk goods took 
the place of cotton, better furniture was seen in the houses, 
and people lived in more comfort than of old. Up to this 
time only wood, or soft coal, had been burned. The hard 
coal, or anthracite coal, of Pennsylvania was discovered in 
1791, but it was long before people learned how to burn it, 
and it was not generally used before 1830. Since then it 
has made our houses much more comfortable. Gas was 
first used for lighting in 1822, and soon became common. 
It proved a very useful invention. 



THE UNITED STATES. 173 

The First Panic. — The prosperous times of which we 
have spoken did not last. A few years after the war busi- 
ness fell into a very bad state. The banks refused to pay 
out any money, no gold or silver was to be had, and hun- 
dreds of persons became poor. It was the first business 
panic of the country, and for several years the people were 
in great distress. After that time business grew better and 
things went on again as before. 



PART V.-QUESTIONS FOR EXAMINATION. 

I. What was the condition of the people after the Revolution? What 
was done in Massachusetts ? In what way were the people well off? What 
was thought of Washington ? What did he do ? Did Congress have much 
power ? Why not ? What needed to be done ? When and where did the 
Constitutional Convention meet ? What great document did it prepare ? 
What were to be the powers of the new government ? Of what three bodies 
was it composed ? Of what two bodies is Congress made up ? What are the 
duties of these ? What is the duty of the Supreme Court ? What is the 
duty of the President ? What power has he ? Who was the first President, 
and when elected ? What city was made the seat of government ? What 
troubles took place in Western Pennsylvania ? To what place was the seat 
of ■ government removed in 1790? Where in 1800? What three States 
were formed about this time ? What took place in Ohio ? Who was the 
second President ? Who the third ? What two parties were there ? What 
was the difference between them? What great purchase was made in 1803? 
How far did the United States extend before that time ? How far after? 

II. How did France and England deal with American commerce? What 
difficulty arose with France ? What was the character of the people of 
Tripoli ? How did they act towards American commerce ? What did Presi- 
dent Jefferson do ? Describe the fate of the frigate Philadelphia. How did 
the trouble end ? What claim was made by England ? How did the French 
and English war affect American trade? What act was passed by Congress? 
What was its purpose ? What country did it hurt most ? AVhat took 
place among the Western Indians ? In what did the dispute end ? Who 
was President during the war ? When did it begin and how long did it last? 
Where did the principal fighting take place ? What was the population of 
the country at this time ? How did the American preparation for war com- 



174 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

pare with that of England? What American officer was sent to Lake 
Erie ? What did he do ? What was the result of the battle of Lake Erie ? 
What other victories did the Americans win ? Between what ships was the 
first naval battle ? What success had the Americans on the ocean ? What 
city did the British attack in 1814 ? What did they do there? What other 
city did they attack ? Who commanded the Americans at New Orleans ? 
What kind of soldiers had he? What was the result of the British attack? 
Why was it important to end the war ? What effect had the treaty of peace 
on the people ? 

IIL What took place in Northern Africa? What effect did peace have 
on business? How did it affect manufactures? What did this set people 
to talking about? What happened to the political parties? Why was 
this period called " the era of good feeling" ? Who became President in 
1817 ? What war took place during his Presidency ? What was the result 
of the war ? How many States were there in 1821 ? What dispute arose 
when Missouri asked to be made a State? Why were slaves kept in the 
South after they were set free in the North ? What was the " Missouri Com- 
promise"? What did Congress do to make travelling easier ? What great 
work of public improvement was done in New York ? What important 
question now arose in Congress ? Why was a tariff wanted ? Why did not 
the South want it ? What effect did the tariff have ? Who was elected 
President in 1824 ? What new parties arose while he was President? What 
questions divided the people ? What did the Whigs want, and where were 
they strongest ? What the Democrats, and where were they strongest ? 

IV. When was the first census of the United States taken ? What was 
the population ? What increase had taken place by 1830 ? What was the 
condition of the Western country in 1780 ? How was emigration westward 
conducted in New York and New England ? How along the Ohio? When 
were the first houses built in Cincinnati ? What was the condition of the 
cities in those days? How were they lighted? How did people strike a 
light? How were houses warmed? Where did most of the people live? 
What was the character of farm-life? What kind of clothes were worn? 
What amusements did the people have ? How did the rich people in the 
cities dress? What was considered an act of politeness? What were Presi- 
dent Washington's receptions like ? What President did away with cere- 
mony ? What was the most important Southern plant ? Why so ? What 
trouble was had with it ? Who invented the " cotton-gin" ? For what pur- 
pose ? What effect did it have on the South ? Who invented the first useful 
steamboat ? How fast did it go ? How were sailors affected on seeing it ? 
How did people travel on the Western rivers before steamboats were used? 
When did tlie first steamship cross the Atlantic? What was its name? 



THE UNITED STATES. 175 

When and where was the first railnmd built in America? How were the 
cars drawn ? Who invented the locomotive ? When was it first tried in 
America? What did the farmers think it would do? Were they correct? 
Who was La Fayette ? When did he visit America ? What changes did 
he find ? How was he received ? How was business after the war with Great 
Britain ? What improvements did the people make ? When was anthracite 
coal first discovered in Pennsylvania ? When did it come into general use ? 
When was gas first used for lighting ? When did the first business panic 
take place ? What effect did it have ? 



j[76 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



PART VI. 

TWENTY YEARS OF PROGRESS. 
I.— THE TARIFF TROUBLES AND THE PANIC. 

Andrew Jackson as President. — General Andrew Jack- 
son became President in 1829. He was a very popular 
man, for the people did not forget how well he had fought 
at New Orleans ; so he was President for eight years, from 
1829 to 1837. Yet he was a man without education, and 
was rough in his manners and obstinate in his opinions. 
Wliat he thought it right to do he did, without asking any- 
body or caring for anybody's opinion. But men who act in 
that way are apt to make mischief, for it takes more than 
one to tell what it is best to do when great questions arise. 

The South Carolina Trouble. — The first diificulty that 
arose was about the tarift'. The people of South Carolina 
did not like the tariff, and they passed a law saying that 
foreign goods should come into that State without paying 
duties. This was against the Constitution, which said that 
only Congress should pass laws of that kind. But the law- 
makers of South Carolina declared that if Congress inter- 
fered with what had been done the State would not remain 
in the Union, but would be made a separate nation. 

President Jackson was a Democrat, and therefore belonged 
to the party that was in favor of low tariff. But it was his 
duty to carry out the laws, and this he determined to do. 
He said that South Carolina should pay the duties, and sent 



THE UNITED STATES. 177 

war ships to Charleston to make the people obey the laws. 
Everybody knew that Jackson meant what he said, and that 
he would force the State to remain in the Union and to obey 
the laws made by Congress, if he had to do it with an army. 

But about this time Congress passed a law to lower the 
tariif, a part of which was to be taken off every year for ten 
years. This settled the trouble. South Carolina withdrew 
her " Ordinance of Secession," and there was no more talk 
of leaving the Union. 

The Bank Question. — The next great question was about 
the United States Bank. This bank had been started in 
1816, and was to continue for twenty years. Its charter 
would run out in 1836, and Congress was asked for a new 
one. A bill was passed to give it a charter, but the Presi- 
dent would not sign it, so it did not become a law. He 
also took away the government money from the bank. 
This proved to be a serious matter, and helped to bring the 
country into great troubles. When it was found that the 
United States Bank must stop, State banks started up all over 
the country, and these lent money freely to speculators. But 
this was only paper money, and the banks had very little 
gold and silver to make it good. 

The Panic of 1837. — At that time there was much specu- 
lation in Western lands, and much also in foreign goods. 
Business was brisk, and every one thought the country was 
prosperous. But nearly all this business was done on the 
paper money of the State banks and on credit. It all ended 
in one of the greatest panics in business the country has 
ever known. The President said that gold and silver must 
be paid for the Western lands, and this brought on the panic. 
All over the States the banks stopped payment of coin, 
merchants were ruined, factories closed, and business came 
nearly to an end. There were ftiilures for millions of 

12 



178 ^^'^ ELEMENTARY UlSTORV OF 

dollars, and many thousands of people could get no Avork 
to do and little food to eat. This began in 1837 and con- 
tinued for a year, but it was several years before the eflects 
of it were over. 

Harrison elected President. — A new President had been 
elected in 1836, and began his term in 1837. This was 
Martin Van Buren. He was a Democrat ; but by the time 
of the next election, in 1840, the business troubles had 
changed the opinions of many of the people, and General 
Harrison, a Wliig candidate, was elected President. But he 
lived only one month after taking his seat as President, and 
the Vice-President, John Tyler, took his place. Harrison 
was the first President to die in office. 

Indian Wars. — AVe must now go back and tell of some 
Indian wars that took place while Jackson was President. 
As the people pushed farther into the country they met neAv 
tribes of Indians. These were often treated very unjustly 
by the white settlers, many of whom were rough and brutal 
men. The Indians took up arms to defend themselves, and 
then war began. 

One of these wars broke out in 1832, in the North-west. 
It was with the Sac and Fox Indians, who were led by a 
chief named Black Hawk. There was some hard fighting 
before they were put down. 

A much more serious war was with the Seminole Indians 
of Florida. This war began in 1835, and continued for 
about seven years. The Indians hid in the swamps and 
what are called the everglades of Florida, so that the soldiers 
had much trouble to find them. They would rush out and 
do what harm they could and then hurry back to their 
hiding-places. Many soldiers were killed, and it cost the 
United States thirty millions of dollars to put down these 
Indians. Finally they were forced to submit. 



THE UNITED STATES. 179 

A large district of fertile land had been set aside and 
called the Indian Territory. Here the Seminoles were sent, 
and also the Cherokees and other Southern tribes. Several 
N^orthern tribes have been sent there since. The whites are 
not permitted to interfere with them, and the tribes of the 
Indian Territory are growing prosperous and civilized. 

John Tyler as President. — After the death of General 
Harrison the Vice-President, John Tyler, became President, 
as we have said. He did not please the party that elected 
him, as he vetoed several bills which they wished to pass. 
One of these bills was to establish a national bank, like 
that which President Jackson had brought to an end. 

The Freedom of Texas. — The most important affair which 
occurred while Tyler was President was the request of Texas 
to be made a part of the United States. Texas had been 
held by Spain since the time La Salle's colony was destroyed 
by the Spaniards. When Mexico gained its freedom from 
Spain, Texas became part of it. But many Americans had 
settled in Texas, and they did not like the way in which they 
were treated by the Mexican government. So they rebelled 
and began a war for freedom. 

This war began in 1835, and in 1836 the Mexicans were 
defeated and forced to leave the country. Texas became in- 
dependent. But after some years it asked to be made a part 
of the United States. The ISTorthern people were opposed to 
this, for they knew that it would be a slave State ; but finally, 
in 1845, it was accepted as a State. This was a large addi- 
tion to the United States, for Texas is an extensive country. 

II.— THE WAR WITH MEXICO. 

The Opening of the War. — The people of Mexico were 
very much dissatisfied to find that Texas had been made part 
of the United States. They claimed that it still belonged to 



IgO AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Mexico. And there was a dispute about the boundary, 
Mexico claimed that the boundary was the K^ueces River, 
and Texas that it was the Rio Grande, a hundred miles 
farther west. Both countries sent armies into this disputed 
territory, and as soon as they met they began to light. Two 
battles were fought. The Americans gained the ^'ictory in 
both, and the Mexicans had to retreat. 

The Advance into Mexico. — General Taylor was in com- 
mand of the American army. lie now crossed the Rio 
Grande and took possession of Matamoras, a Mexican town. 
When the news of this was received there was great ex- 
citement. Many of the people did not want to go to war, 
but others did, and Congress voted in favor of war. Many 
volunteers joined General Taylor's army, and he marched 
into the country and captured the strong city of Monterey, 
where there were ten thousand Mexican troops. 

The Battle of Buena Vista. — General Taylor pushed on 
Into the mountain region. lie had only five thousand me!i, 
and the Mexican general, Santa Anna, was marching against 
him with more than twenty thousand. They met on Feb- 
ruary 22, 1847, at a place called Buena Vista. General 
Taylor was in great danger, for most of his men were vol- 
unteers, while the Mexicans were trained soldiers. But he 
took possession of a narrow pass through the mountains. 
All day long the Mexicans tried to drive the American army 
out of this pass, but they could not do it, and at night they 
retreated in great haste and disorder. 

The news of this victory was heard with much joy by the 
people of the United States. General Taylor was regarded 
as a great military hero, and the next year he was elected 
President of the United States. During the Mexican war 
James K. Polk was President. He had been elected by the 
Democratic party in 1844. 




JI3 Lipp.ncolt Co riulo 



THE UNITED STATES. 181 

The Capture of Vera Cruz. — There was no more fighting 
in the nortli of Mexico. It had been decided to carry the 
war to the south, and General Scott was sent with a fleet 
and army to attack the city of Vera Cruz, the principal sea- 
port of Mexico. There was a very strong fortress at Vera 
Cruz, but it was soon forced to surrender. The Mexicans 
could not stand the cannon-balls that were poured like hail- 
stones into their fort. 

The March to the City of Mexico. — The road from Vera 
Cruz to the City of Mexico is over a mountainous country, 
and the passes in these mountains were held by the Mexi- 
cans. Their army was much stronger than that of General 
Scott, but he marched on and drove them back wherever 
he met them. When the Americans got near the city there 
were many battles to fight, but every one of them ended in 
a victory for General Scott's army. 

The most important battle was at Chapultepec. This was 
a strong fort on the top of a very steep hill. The Americans 
had to climb up the hill and get into the fort by ladders, 
while musket- and cannon-balls came down on them like 
hail ; but they fought their way up the hill and got into 
the fort, from which they drove the Mexicans. 

The next day, September 14, 1847, the Americans con- 
tinued to advance until they reached the City of Mexico, of 
which they took possession. That was the last battle of the 
war, and Santa Anna, the Mexican President, asked for 
peace. 

The "War elsewhere. — But this is not the whole story of 
the war. While the fighting we have described was taking 
place, an army under General Kearney had marched into 
iJ^ew Mexico and taken possession of it. Captain John C. 
Fremont, with sixty men, was at this time in California. 
He had been sent there to explore the country, but as soon 



182 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

as he heard that war was going on he got the American 
settlers to join him, and began to drive out the Mexican 
soldiers. He was helped in this by an American fleet, and 
soon all California was held by the United States. 

New Territory acquired. — At the end of the war the 
American army had full possession of New Mexico and 
California, and when the treaty of peace was signed Mexico 
agreed to give up this territory, for which the United States 
was to pay fifteen million dollars. Thus a great district, 
containing more than half a million square miles, was added 
to the United States. This district contains the States of 
California, Nevada, Utah, and parts of Colorado and Kan- 
sas, with the Territories of Arizona and New Mexico. 

No one dreamed at that time how valuable was this new 
territory. Some thought that the money paid for it was 
more than it was worth. It was thinly settled by Mexicans, 
with a few American settlers. No gold had been found in 
it by the Mexicans, though they had been looking for gold 
for three hundred years. So they did not think the country 
of much value, and were very willing to give it up to the 
United States for the money paid. 

The Discovery of Gold. — But it was not long before they 
would have given ten times as much to have it back again ; 
for the Americans had not owned it long before gold was 
found. A workman who was building a mill-dam in the 
Sacramento River found shining yellow particles in the sand. 
He eagerly gathered some of this, took it to his emploj'cr, 
had it tested, and proved it to be gold. At once everybody 
quit working and went on the hunt for gold. Plenty of 
it was found, and when the news was heard by the people 
of the East they began to emigrate in great immbers to the 
West, every one eager to make his fortune. 

There was gold in very many parts of the territory. It 



THE UNITED STATES. 183 

was found in the sand, in the river-beds, in the rock ; in 
dust, and in lumps. It was hke a fairy tale, and thousands 
of people hurried to California, eager for gold. Silver 
mines were also discovered, and since that time an immense 
amount of gold and silver has been taken from that country 
which at first was thought of so little value. But California 
would be rich if it had no gold or silver. Its soil is very 
fertile, and every year great quantities of grain and fruits 
are raised. The timber on its mountains is also of great 
value. The Mexicans made nothing of it in three hundred 
years, but the Americans have made it a rich and populous 
State in much less than one hundred, 

III.— THE WOKK OF THE PEOPLE. 

Increase of Territory. — In the period which we have just 
considered the country had made great progress. Let us 
stop here and take a look back at what had been done. 

First, it is important to consider the size of the United 
States. We have told how it had gained a great territory 
from Mexico. But other territory had come to it of which 
we must now tell the story. 

Lewis's and Clark's Expedition. — When France sold the 
country west of the Mississippi to the United States no one 
knew how large that country was, or what might be found 
in it. So two men. Captains Lewis and Clark, were sent 
out to see what it was like. There were thirty men with 
them, and they left St. Louis in 1803, and were more than 
two years in a wilderness where no white man had ever set 
foot before. They went up the Missouri River as far as they 
could, and then crossed the Rocky Mountains and went down 
the Columbia River till they reached the Pacific Ocean. 
They had wonderful stories to tell, when they came back, of 
the tribes they had seen and the adventures they had met 



184 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

with. They were probably the first white men who beheld 
the great herds of buffalo of the Western plains. They had 
seen herds of them a mile wide crossing the rivers like a 
great army. 

The Pur Trade. — Tliese explorers found that the Indians 
of the Pacific coast had furs to sell, and a New York mer- 
chant, named John Jacob Astor, sent men there to trade for 
furs. He grew ver}^ rich in this business. His trading-post 
was afterwards sold to a British fur company, and this gave 
the British possession of the territory about the Columbia 
River. 

This company did all it could to keep Americans out of 
the country. It spread a story that the mountains could not 
be crossed with wagons, and thus made emigrants afraid to 
venture. And it laid plans to bring in a large body of Eng- 
lish settlers. This was done because the United States was 
then making a treaty with England about that western 
country, and the fur company wanted to hold on to Oregon 
if it could. 

Dr. "Whitman's Enterprise. — There was an American in 
Oregon named Dr. Whitman. He saw what was being done, 
and determined to go to Washington and try to stop the 
government from giving up that country to England. So 
he started on horseback across the mountains. The journey 
was a terrible one. It was the winter season, and ice and 
snow were everywhere. It took him three months to get to 
Santa Fe. Wlien he reached Washington he found that the 
treaty had been signed, but that Oregon was left out of the 
eettlement. So he told the people how valuable Oregon 
was, and that there were easy passes through the mountains, 
and he got many emigrants to go there with him. By the 
end of 1844 there were three thousand Americans in that 
region. 



THE UNITED STATES. 185 

The Growth of the Country. — This settled the matter. 
That country could not be given up now. In 1846 a treaty 
was made with England which decided that the country 
which we now know as the States of Oregon, Washington, 
and Idaho was part of the United States. 

The great republic had made a wonderful growth in fifty 
years. In 1800 the United States was bounded on the west 
by the Mississippi River, and on the south by Florida. It 
did not reach to the Gulf of Mexico, for Florida had a strip 
of land fifty miles wide along the Gulf coast. By 1850 it 
had gained Florida and the whole vast country between the 
Mississippi River and the Pacific Ocean, together with 
Texas and the whole of Northern Mexico. In fifty years it 
had grown to three times its original size, and had become 
one of the greatest countries on the earth. We may well 
call this a wonderful progress. 

The population was growing as fast as the country. Many 
steamships now crossed the ocean, and emigrants were 
coming in by thousands. Most of these settled in the East, 
but great numbers of the Eastern people went West. This 
was not difficult to do. Every river had its steamboats, and 
railroads were being built in all parts of the country, so that 
it was becoming an easy matter to travel long distances. 
I^ew cities started up in the West. In 1830 there was only 
a fort at Chicago. Kow it is one of the largest cities in the 
country. In other places where there are large cities now 
there was only the wilderness then. 

Emigration West. — But there were no railroads or steam- 
boats to carry emigrants across the Rocky Mountains to the 
Pacific coast. Those who went there had to travel in 
wagons drawn by oxen or horses. It was a journey of great 
hardships and danger. The emigrants were often attacked 
and murdered by the Indians. Sometimes they were 



186 



^iV^ ELEMENTARY HISTORV OF 



smothered in tlie snows, or died of starvation. The road 
was marked by the hones of dead animals. Yet thousands 
crossed that way, and the AVestern country rapidly filled wy). 
It was the desire for gold and silver that took most of 
these emigrants across the mountains. Others went to settle 
on farms or to do business in cities. But some of them 
went for a different purpose. These were the Mormons, a 
religious sect which had been started by a man named 




rKAIllIK LAND.SCAl'K. 



Joseph Smith, who said he had found a book of religious 
teachings written on gold plates that were buried in the 
earth. He called this the " Book of Mormon." The Mor- 
mons first settled in the region near the Mississippi River, 
but the people did not like their doings and mobs drove 
them away. So in the end they crossed the mountains and 
settled in the country since known as Utah, and which was 
made a Territory of the United States in 1850. 

Increase of Wealth. — The country was now growing very 



THE UNITED STATES. 



187 



rich and populous. In 1830 the population was ahout 
thirteen million. In 1850 it was over twenty-three million, 
— nearly twice as many. New farming lands were being 
cleared, and workshops and great factories were being built 
in all directions. One could hear the rattle of machinery all 
over the land. America no longer depended on England for 
goods. The greatest variety of goods was made here ; but 




STEAM-TUG WITH LUMBER RAFT. 



much also came across the ocean, and the shops were filled 
with costly articles. 

Among the riches of America must be named the prod- 
ucts of the mines. Pennsylvania brought great quantities 
of coal and iron into the market. In I»J'ew York there were 
mines of salt. Lead mines were worked in Illinois and 
Iowa, and rich copper mines in Michigan. Since that time 



188 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

these substances have been found in other places, while gold 
and silver have been found in many i)arts of the Rocky 
Mountains. The forests of America are also of very great 
value, and every year immense quantities of timber are cut, 
to be made into ships, houses, furniture, and very many 
other things. 

All this brought much money to the government, and in 
1835 the last of the national debt was paid. The govern- 
ment had more money than it wanted, and gave what it did 
not need to the States. 

Valuable Inventions. — During this period there were 
many inventions, some of which have proved very valuable. 
Among these is the electric telegraph, which is almost as 
important as the railroad. Samuel F. B. Morse was the 
American inventor of this. His first patent was taken out 
in 1837, but people could not be made to believe in the tele- 
graph, and it was not tried, except for short distances, till 
1844. Then a line was established from Baltimore to 
Washington. It proved a great success, and there are now 
more than one hundred and ninety thousand miles of tele- 
graph in the United States. 

Other inventions of great value were made. One of these 
was the reaping-machine, which has been a very great help 
to farmers. Another was the friction-match. It is so easy 
now to strike a light and make a fire that it seems strange 
how people ever got along without matches. Another great 
invention was that of vulcanized rubber. 'Before then india- 
rubber was soft and of little use ; but by mixing sulphur 
with it it was made hard and firm, and it came into use for 
a great many purposes. The sewing-machine, which was 
invented in 1846, was quite as useful. Before that time all 
sewing had to be done by hand, and the labor was very 
great. Besides these there were hundreds of other inveU' 



THE UNITED STATES. 



189 



tions, all of which have helped people to live better, and to 
do more work with less labor. 

The Postal Service. — For a long time the government 
had been carrying letters for the people ; but at first very 
few were carried, and these went very slowly. Benjamin 




PROFESSOR S. F. B. MORSE, THE INVENTOR OF THE ELECTRO-MAGNETIC TELEGRAPH. 



Franklin was the first Postmaster-General. The cost of the 
postal service then was great. But the railroads made 
the expense small, while the speed became much greater. 
Before 1850 it had cost ten cents to send a letter from Phila- 
delphia to Boston. In 1863 the price was lowered to three 
cents for all parts of the country, and there was a very great 



190 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



increase in the number of letters sent. In 1883 postage 
was reduced to two cents. There are thousands of letters 
sent to-day for every one that was sent a hundred years 
ago. 

The Prisons. — In old times the prisons were very badly 
managed and those confined in them were treated cruelly. 
Most of the States whipped their prisoners and ill treated 
them in other ways. One State kept its criminals in an old 
copper mine. Men were still sent to prison for debt. All 
this is now done away with, and prisoners in most of the 
States are well treated. They are made to work, but they 
have clean and healthful rooms and good food. 

Education. — Education had also very much improved. 
Public schools had been established in nearly all the States, 

and many more of the peo- 
ple were educated than in 
the past. But the methods 
of teaching and the school- 
books used were still poor, 
and they have been im- 
proving ever since. In the 
early days of the country 
there had been little time 
for study or amusement; 
most of the time was taken 
to make a living. But now 
people had more time to themselves, and more money, and 
they paid much more attention to public affairs and to 
education. 

The Temperance Reform. — A great work was being done 
by the temperance societies. In former times nothing was 
thought of seeing people drunk, and even church people 
would drink strong liquors. Rum and whiskey were kept 




THE OLD EPHRATA PRESS. 



THE UNITED STATES. 



191 



in every house and offered to every visitor. But the tem- 
perance societies began to teach the people that this was 
wrong, and lecturers were sent to all parts of the country to 
talk about the need of temperance. Many people ceased 
driuking and many more ceased keeping liquor in their 
houses. It became a disgrace to be seen drunk, and it is 
becoming more and more a disgrace every day. Doctors 
showed that rum killed more people than any disease, and 
that a great part of the sickness, crime, and poverty of the 
country was caused by intemperance. This had never been 
shown before, and very many persons signed the pledge not 
to drink. 

Newspapers and Books. — The temperance movement 
was greatly helped by other things which took the people 








rdife^ 











A MODERN PRINTING-PRESS. 



away from drinking-saloons. Most of the people had 
learned how to read, and newspapers were now published 
everywhere and spread all over the country. These papers 
were much larger and had much more in them than those 
of the past, though they were not as large as those we 
have now. 

Books were also far more plentiful and much cheaper. 
Those who at one time did not know how to spend their 



192 ^-^ ELEMENTARY IlISTORV OF 

time now had no trouble. There were many innocent 
amusements, and it was not necessary to go for pleasure to 
drinking-places or other localities where bad habits might 
be learned. 

Many Americans were now writing books which were read 
all over the civilized world. At one time the English had 
laughed at the idea of any one reading an American book, 
but they now began to read works by American authors 
themselves. And it was admitted that America had some 
of the greatest statesmen of the world. Daniel Webster 
was one of the ablest orators that had ever lived, and there 
were many other men of great ability in the American 
Congress. 

Thus it may be seen that the United States had made 
wonderful progress in every way. It was a very difierent 
country from what it had been at the time of the Revolu- 
tion. It was then one of the small and poor countries of 
the world ; now it had become one of the great and rich 
nations. But it had a terrible trial to go through yet, in 
which all its wealth and power were to be employed to the 
utmost. The story of this great trial we have next to tell. 



PART VI.-QUESTIONS FOR EXAMINATION. 

I. Who became President in 1829? Why was he popular? What was 
his character ? What difficulty arose with South Carolina? What did that 
State do? What did Jackson do? What did Congress do to end the dis- 
pute? What other great question arose? How long did the United States 
Bank have to run? What did Jackson do about the bank charter bill ? 
What effect did it have ? What was the condition of business and specula- 
tion before 1837 ? What action did Jackson take about the Western lands ? 
What followed ? Describe the panic of 1837. Who became President in 
1837? Who in 1841 ? What happened to him ? Who succeeded him ? 
What war took place in 1832 in the North-west? What war broke out in 
Florida? How long did it last? Why did it continue so long ? What was 



THE UNITED STATES. 193 

done with the Seminoles ? AVhat is the Indian Territory used for ? What 
important affair took place while Tyler was President ? How did the Texan 
war end ? "When was Texas accepted as a State of the Union ? 

II. What claim was made by Mexico about Texas? What boundary dis- 
pute was there ? What took place in the disputed region ? What did General 
Taylor do? Where did he meet Santa Anna's army ? How did the armies 
compare in size ? What was the result of the battle ? Who was elected 
President in 1844 ? What Mexican city was attacked by General Scott ? To 
what point did he march from Vera Cruz? What was the result of his 
battles with the Mexicans ? Describe the battle of Chapultepec. When was 
the Citj^ of Mexico taken ? What did Fremont do in California ? What 
new territory did the United States acquire by the treaty of peace? 
What present States and Territories does it comprise ? What was thought 
then of the value of this territory ? Describe the finding of gold in California. 
What other precious metal was found ? What other value has California? 
What efiect did the discovery of gold have upon emigration ? 

III. Who were the first to explore the Western territory of the United 
States ? What did they tell on their return ? What is said of the fur trade 
on the Pacific ? What did the British do to keep American emigrants away ? 
What did Dr. Whitman do ? How many people were in Oregon by the end 
of 1844? What treaty was made in 1846? What were the boundaries of 
the United States in 1800 ? What had it gained by 1850 ? How was emi- 
gration made easier? What was the condition of Chicago in 1830? What 
is it now? How did emigrants cross the Kocky Mountain region? What 
hardships and dangers did they encounter? Tell the story of the Mormons. 
What was the population in 1^30? What in 1850? What was the prog- 
ress in industry ? What is said about the mines of America ? Who in- 
vented the American electric telegraph ? In what j^ear was the first line 
built ? How many miles of telegraph are there now in the United States ? 
What other important inventions were made ? How was india-rubber made 
useful ? When was the sewing-machine invented ? What did it cost to send 
letters before 1850? What after? When did the two-cent postage begin? 
How were the prisons managed in old times ? How are they now ? How 
were the schools then ? How are they now ? Was drunkenness common in 
old times? What did the temperance societies do? What did the doctors 
show about intemperance ? What is now thought about it ? What is said 
about newspapers and books ? What did the English think about American 
books ? What do they think now ? Who was the greatest American 
orator ? 

13 



]94 ^^' ELEMENTARY HIHTORY OF 



PART VII. 

THE ERA OP THE CIVIL WAR. 
I.— THE SLAVERY CONTROVERSY. 

An Important Question. — The portion of the history of 
our country which is now before us is a very important one. 
AVe have to tell how a serious question, which had made 
trouble between the North and South for years, and which 
Congress could not settle to please all the people, in time 
brought on one of the greatest wars the world has ever 
known. And we have also to tell how four years of hard 
fighting and killing of people and ruin of property became 
necessary to end the difficulty which could not be settled in 
peace. The war did much harm, but it did much good 
also, for it saved the country from future danger. 

The question was that of slavery. We must go back and 
tell how it arose. As we have already said, at one time there 
were slaves in all the colonies. Later on they were all set 
free in the North. It began to look as if they would be 
freed in the South also, for it seemed as if they were of no 
great use. But when the planters began to raise cotton in 
large quantities the slaves became very useful to them. 
They thought the cotton-fields could not be worked without 
them. Buying and selling slaves also became an important 
business. On account of this the people of the South gave 
up all thought of doing without slaves, but looked on them 
as their most valuable property. 



THE UNITED STATES. 195 

The Missouri Compromise. — "When the new States west 
of the Mississippi began to come into the Union, the South 
wanted to have them made slave States and the North 
wanted them to be free States. This question was settled for 
a time, in 1820, by the " Missouri Compromise," of which we 
have already told. Congress decided that Missouri should 
be a slave State, but that no more slave States should be 
made north of the latitude of its southern boundary. There 
was no more diiiiculty of this kind until 1850. But many 
people in the ISTorth thought that all slavery was wrong and 
should be done away with, and they formed societies, and 
helped slaves to escape from their masters. They believed 
they were doing a good work in this, but the Southern 
people declared that they were being robbed of their prop- 
erty, and grew very indignant. 

The Fugitive Slave Law. — In 1850 there was a law passed 
for the return of runaway slaves to their masters. It was 
thought this would settle the trouble, but it only made it 
worse. The party opposed to slavery grew stronger, and did 
all it could to keep those who were claimed as slaves from 
being taken South. 

The Kansas Trouble. — Millard Fillmore was now Presi- 
dent. General Taylor had been made President by the 
Whig party in 1849, but he died the next year, and Fillmore, 
the Vice-President, took his place. The next election was 
held in 1852, and Franklin Pierce was elected by the Dem- 
ocrats. The trouble increased while he was President. Two 
new Territories were formed west of Missouri, and named 
Kansas and Nebraska. According to the Missouri Compro- 
mise no slaves would be allowed in these when they became 
States, because they lay north of the boundary settled upon 
in 1820. But a dispute arose as to whether they should be 
free or slave States, and in 1854 a bill was passed which 



196 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

said that the people of these Territories should settle that 
question for themselves. 

This law caused much angry and bitter feeling. It set 
aside the Missouri Compromise and opened the whole diffi- 
culty again. People began to hurry into Kansas. The 
South wanted to get the most men there, so that when it 
came to a vote they could vote for slavery. The North 
tried to do the same thing, so that they could vote against 
slavery. 

Very soon these men of different opinions began to fight. 
Towns were burned and people were killed in Kansas. 
Votes were taken and both parties claimed to have won. 
One party tried to organize a slave State and the other a 
free State, and the people of the Territory for a long time 
were at war. 

The New Parties. — While these things were going on 
political changes were taking place. The old Whig party 
ceased to exist, and there came up a new one called the 
Free Soil party. It was opposed to the making of any more 
slave States. In 1856 the Free Soil became part of a new 
party, the Republican. After this the people were divided 
into the two leading political sections which we still have, 
the Republican and the Democratic parties. These have 
several points of difference, but the principal one at that 
time was slavery. 

In 1856, James Buchanan was elected President by the 
Democratic party. lie had a stormy time before him, for 
the excitement of the people was becoming very great. 
The feeling against slavery was spreading in the North, 
while the South was bitter against those who were helping 
the slaves to escape. 

The John Brown Raid. — This feeling was greatly increased 
by an event which took place in 1859. There was an old 



THE UNITED STATES. 197 

man, named John Brown, who had Ijeen very active in Kan- 
sas, and had fought fiercely against the Southern party there. 
He was so bitter against slavery that he thought it was his 
duty to stir up the slaves to rebel against their masters and 
make themselves free by force. 

So he led a party to Harper's Ferry, in Virginia, where 
there was an arsenal belonging to the government. He took 
possession of this. It was his purpose to get the slaves to- 
gether, give them arms from the arsenal, and lead them to 
fight for their freedom. But no slaves came to help him, 
and very soon he and his party were taken prisoners by a 
force of United States soldiers. 

John Brown was given up to the authorities of Virginia, 
who tried him for treason. He was found guilty and 
hanged. 

Election of Lincoln. — This event stirred up the feelings 
of the people more than ever. Many who thought that 
John Brown was wrong felt sympathy for him, and when 
the time came for the next Presidential election, in 1860, 
the two parties were very bitter against each other, while 
the Republican party had grown much 
stronger. When the votes were counted 
it proved that the Republicans had 
elected their candidate. This was Abra- 
ham Lincoln, of Blinois, who took his 
seat as President of the United States on 
the 4th of March, 1861. 

When he was elected the country was 
at peace, and most of the people had no 
idea that war would follow. When he 
took his seat the country was on the 
verge of war. We have now to tell how this change came 
about. \ 




198 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORV OF 

II.— FROM SECESSION TO EMANCIPATION. 

The State Rights Doctrine. — The election was no sooner 
over than trouble began. The political leaders in South 
Carolina had said that that State would secede if Lincoln 
was elected President. What did thej mean by this ? Let 
us see. The United States, as we know, is made up of a 
number of States which have joined together to form one 
country. Some people believed that each State had the 
right to withdraw again if it wished, and carry on its gov- 
ernment alone. This is known as the " State Rights" 
doctrine. Others believed that the States had no right to 
withdraw, and that they had given up all such rights when 
they came into the Union. 

This was the question that was now before the people, — 
whether the United States was strong enough to hold to- 
gether as a single nation, or so weak that the States could 
leave the Union at their Avill. This problem was to be set- 
tled in the next four years. 

Seven States secede. — As soon as it was known that 
Lincoln had been elected. South Carolina determined to 
secede. A convention of delegates met, and on December 
20, 1860, it was declared to the world that this State was no 
longer a part of the United States, but an independent na- 
tion, that it could not be kept in the Union against its will, 
and that in future it intended to govern itself Very soon 
afterwards all the States that border on the Gulf of Mexico 
did the same thing. Seven States in all declared that they 
were out of the Union. 

The Confederacy formed. — These States then joined to- 
gether and called themselves the Confederate States of 
America. Jefferson Davis was elected President, and Alex- 
ander H. Stephens, Vice-President, and Montgomery, Ala- 



Longitudp 87 Westliran 

L.Nopbo^ 1VIAP TO ILLUSTRATE 
THE CIVIL AVAl 

SCALE OF MILES 




Greenwicli. 



Laaflel gVna 




VVasTangtoH. 



■WLipphwoU &Co.P}iHa. 



THE UNITED STATES. 



190 




bama, was selected as the capital of the new Confederacy. 
These States seized the forts and the war material in their 
territory, for they exj^ected that they would not be allowed 
to go in peace. But some forts were held by United States 
officers and soldiers who would not give them up. One of 
these was Fort Sumter, in Charleston 
harbor, which was held by Major Rob- 
ert Anderson. 

Fort Sumter bombarded. — It was 
thus that matters stood when Abraham 
Lincoln took his seat as President, on 
the 4th of March, 1861. The Confed- 
erate authorities at Charleston had 
determined that Fort Sumter should 
be theirs, and had built batteries on 
the shores of the bay near it. On the 
12th of April, 1861, they began to fire on the fort. 
Anderson fired back. This continued for two days. At 
the end of that time the fort was much injured, its barracks 
were on fire, and nearly all its powder was gone. So Major 
Anderson consented to give it up, as he could defend it no 
longer. 

Preparing for War. — When the news of this event spread 
through the country it caused great excitement. All hope 
of peace was gone. Everybody now saw that there must 
be war if the country was to be kept together. The Presi- 
dent called for volunteers, and great numbers offered. In 
the South four more States seceded, — Virginia, North Caro- 
lina, Arkansas, and Tennessee. Everywhere men Avere 
gathering, drilling, and marching. It was clear that before 
many days they would meet in deadly conflict. 

The Battle of Bull Run. — Thousands of volunteers hur- 
ried to Washington to save that city from danger. A 



Major 



200 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Southern army collected in Virginia, just south of Wash- 
ington. On the 21st of July these two armies met near 
Bull Run, a small stream a few miles away from Washing- 
ton. Here the first important battle of the war was fought. 
There were about thirty thousand men on each side. They 
were all new troops, but they fought well. For a while it 
looked as if the Union army w^ould win ; but just then a 
fresh force joined the Confederate army, and on seeing this 
the Union ranks broke into disorder, and the soldiers fled in 
a panic to Washington. The Southern army had gained 
the victory. 

This battle had a great effect. The people of the South 
were full of joy. Some of them thought that this one vic- 
tory would end the war ; but it only made the North more 
determined. Congress called for half a million of men and 
voted to borrow five hundred million dollars. On every side 
volunteers flocked to the camps. Large armies were soon 
in the field on both sides. 

The War that followed. — And now we have to tell the 
story of a time that was fiill of important events. Many 
great battles were fought and hundreds of small ones. It 
would need a large book to describe them, and then we 
would only be telling how thousands of men were killed 
and wounded, how millions of dollars' worth of property 
was destroyed, and how for years terror and ruin hung over 
the whole country. It would be of no advantage to tell 
all this, and we shall simply give an outline of what took 
place. 

There was much hard fighting in 1862. Large armies 
had been raised and drilled, vast quantities of arms and 
other materials had been gathered, and everything made 
ready for a great war. This was the work of 1861. When 
1862 opened the armies were ready for a terrible conflict. 



THE UNITED STATES. 



201 




The Contest in the "West. — The fighting took place in 
three regions, — in the West, in Virginia, and on the ocean. 
In the West the United States wanted 
to get control of the rivers that ran 
south. The Confederate States tried to 
prevent this, and built two strong forts 
on the Tennessee and Cumberland 
Rivers, in Kentucky, and also powerful 
works on the Mississippi. The Unionists 
had covered some steamboats with iron 
plates and sent them down these rivers 
as gun-boats. An army marched over- grant. 

land at the same time. This was com- 
manded by General Ulysses S. Grant, who was afterwards to 
become so famous. 

Battle of Pittsburg Landing. — The two forts were soon 
taken, with many prisoners, and the Confederate army had 
to retreat to Tennessee. General Grant followed, and made 
his camp at Shiloh, or Pittsburg Landing, on the Tennessee 
River. Here there took place one of the most desperate 
battles of the war. Grant's army was attacked by a strong 
army under General Albert Sydney Johnston, The fighting 
continued with great fury for two days. On the first day 
the Union army was driven back in much confusion and \vith 
great loss of life, but a fresh force came up, and the next day 
it drove back the Confederates and held the field. Both 
sides had fought hard and lost many men, but the battle 
ended in favor of the ISTorthern army. 

Murfreesborough. — Much other fighting took place in the 
West during the year, and a great battle was fought at Mur- 
freesborough, in Tennessee, on the last day of 1862. The 
two armies fought all day, and three days later there was 
another battle. Then Bragg, the Confederate general, with- 



202 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

drew his army and fell back to Chattanooga. The end of 
the year's tighting left the Union army in possession of all 
Kentucky and Tennessee, 

On the Mississippi. — While this was going on there was a 
severe struggle along the Mississippi River. The Union 
gun-boats and armies had gone down this river and captured 




THE FLEET KUNNING THE BATTERIES AT VlfKSBtKli. 

all the forts of the Confederates, till they came to the city of 
Vicksburg, where very strong forts had been built. 

At the same time a fleet, commanded by Admiral Farra- 
gut, had sailed to the mouth of the Mississippi. There were 
several forts along this part of the river, but the fleet fought 
its way past them and kept on until it reached the city of 
New Orleans, which was forced to surrender. This took 
place on April 25, 1862. 



THE UNITED STATES. 



203 



Vicksburg-. — Then the fleet went on up the river and cap- 
tured other places. It ran past the batteries at Vicksburg 
and joined the fleet above. Thus nearly the whole of the 
great river of th^ West was in the Union hands. But the 
Confederates had two strong places, Vicksburg and Port 
Hudson, and held control of the river between them, so that 
they could get supplies from Texas and the other States 
west of the Mississippi. It was the purpose of the Union 
leaders to capture these places and get control of the whole 
river, and thus cut the Confederacy in two. 

The "War in Virg-inia. — It will be seen that in the West 
the Union army had gained great successes. They held 
Kentucky and Tennessee and part of Mississippi, and had 
won nearly the whole of the Mississippi River. In Virginia, 
on the contrary, the Confederates had been successful, and 
had gained several important victories. 

As soon as Virginia seceded the city of Richmond was 
made the capital of the Confederacy, and Jefterson Davis, 
the President, with the rest of the Confederate government, 
went there. So a great part of the 
war took place between the two capi- 
tal cities, Washington and Richmond. 
Efforts were made to capture both these 
cities, but neither of them was taken 
till near the end of the war. 

Siege of Richmond.— Early in 1862, 
General McClellan, who commanded 
the Union army, moved south to York- 
town, the place where the army of 
Corn wal lis had been captured eighty 
years before. After some fighting he marched close to 
Richmond and built lines of earthworks near that city. A 
battle was fought at a place called Fair Oaks, where Gen- 




204 -IV ELEMENTARY HISTORV OF 

oral Joseph Johnston, who commanded the Confederate 
army, Avas badly wounded. General Robert E. Lee took 
Johnston's place as Confederate commander. This was an 
excellent choice for the Confederates, for General Lee proved 
himself to be one of the greatest soldiers of modern times. 

Stonewall Jackson. — Wliile these events were taking 
place, General Jackson, one of the boldest of the Confeder- 
ate commanders, was winning victories in the Shenandoah 
Valley, which lies to the north-west of Richmond. He was 
usually called " Stonewall" Jackson, because he was said 
to have held his troops " like a stone wall" in the battle of 
Bull Run. 

The Seven Days' Fight. — General Lee now decided to 
make an attack on McClellan. He sent for Stonew^all Jack- 
son to help him, and on June 26 made an assault on the 
Union lines. A dreadful series of battles followed. Each 
army had nearly one hundred thousand men, but the Union 
army suffered a severe defeat, and McClellan began to re- 
treat towards the James River. Lee's army followed, and 
the fighting was kept up for seven days, there being a des- 
perate battle every day. In some of these one side, in some 
the other, was successful, but the retreat continued till the 
James River was reached. Here McClellan built strong 
lines of earthworks and was safe from further attack. Thou- 
sands had been killed and wounded on each side, and the 
siege of Richmond had to be given up. 

Second Battle of Bull Run. — There was another Union 
army now collected in Virginia, under General Pope. In 
August, General Lee marched suddenly to the north and 
made an attack on this army. The battle took place near 
the old battle-ground of Bull Run. It was one of terrible 
slaughter, and in the end the Union army w^as defeated and 
forced back towards "Washington. 



THE UNITED STATES. 205 

Antietam. — Then General Lee led his army across the 
Potomac into Maryland, where he hoped that many vol- 
unteers would join him. General McClellan, who had 
brought his army back from Richmond, followed in great 
haste. The two armies met on September 17, at Antietam 
Creek, in the west of Maryland. The battle that followed 
was one of the most desperate of the war. It ended in 
favor of the Union army. Lee crossed the Potomac again 
and marched back into Virginia. 

Fredericksburg. — There was one more terrible battle in 
Viro-inia durino; the year. This was at the town of Fred- 
ericksburg. General Lee had his army on the hills back of 
the town. General Burnside, who now commanded the 
Union army, crossed the river and attacked him. The 
slaughter that followed was dreadful. The Union army 
was completely defeated, and had about twelve thousand 
men killed and wounded. This ended the fighting in Vir- 
ginia for that year. 

The Blockade Runners. — While these things were taking 
place there were some important operations of the fleet, of 
which we must now speak. Both sides had been busy build- 
ing vessels of war, and a LTnion fleet was sent down the 
coast, which took possession of large districts in North and 
South Carolina, and others in Georgia and Florida. These 
were held till the end of tlie war ; but the seaports of 
Charleston, Savannah, and Wilmington were kept by the 
Confederates. They were blockaded by the Union fleet, 
Imt in spite of the fleet a great many vessels got into them. 
These were called " blockade runners." They took out 
cotton, rice, tobacco, and other articles, and brought back 
things needed in the South, much of the cargo being war 
material. 

The Work of the Merrimac. — Some of the Confederates 



206 -''"^^ ELKMEyTAIiV IIISTORV OF 

spent their time in covering vessels with iron plates, so that 
cannon-balls could not pass through their hulls. One of 
these was a United States war vessel, the Merrimac, which 
had been sunk in the harbor of l^orfolk. This was raised 
and covered with plates of iron. Then it steamed out and 
attacked the wooden war-vessels of the fleet. These fired 
on it, but the heavy cannon-balls glanced oft' from the iron 
hull as if they had been hail-stones. One of the wooden 
vessels was sunk, and great fear was felt as to what this 
iron monster would do. It looked as if it might destroy 
the Union fleet and attack the cities of the Xorth. 

The Monitor and the Merrimac. — But the Union side had 
been building iron vessels too. One of these was of .very 
strange shape. It had a flat deck that came just above the 
water ; on this was a round tower of iron in which were 
two very heavy cannon. People called it a " cheese-box on 
a raft," and that was what it looked like. It v/as sent down 
to Hampton Roads, and reached there the day after the 
fight we have just told of. 

The Merrimac was coming out to attack the other ves- 
sels, when this strange-looking craft, which was called the 
Monitor, came gliding in. A tremendous battle followed. 
The two iron ships battered each other with cannon-balls for 
four hours. Neither hurt the other much, but the Merrimac 
got the worst of it. In the end she turned and hurried back 
to Norfolk. Soon afterwards the Union forces captured 
Norfolk, and the Merrimac was destroyed to prevent her 
falling into their possession. 

This was the first fight that ever took place between two 
iron-clad ships. When the news got to Europe every one 
saw that the days of wooden war ships were over. Since 
that time numbers of iron-clad ships have been built, but 
there has been no war in which they could be fairly tried. 



THE UNITED STATES. 207 

The Emancipation of the Slaves. — The year 1862 ended 
with a very important event. For a long time during the 
war slavery was not interfered with, and the President said 
that the object of the war was merely to bring back the 
seceded States into the Union. But in time he saw that the 
South was getting great help from the slaves, who were 
kept at work on the plantations and helped to build forts 
and do other such work. It would weaken the Confederates 
very much if the slaves were taken from them. 

The President therefore announced that the slaves would 
be liberated on the 1st of January, 1863. On that day there 
was sent out what is known as the " Proclamation of Eman- 
cipation." It declared that all slaves within the Confederacy 
were free and would be free forever after. 

This proclamation had a great effect. From this time on 
the war was fought not only to bring back the seceded 
States, but to liberate the slaves. Many negro regiments 
w^ere formed, and everything was done that could make the 
negroes useful to the North and deprive the South of their 
help. The Confederacy was very much weakened by this 
proclamation. As fast as the armies went south the slaves 
were set free, till in the end they all gained their freedom. 
Since the war there has not been a slave in the United States. 

III.— THE FINAL YEAKS OF THE WAK. 

Battle of Chancellorsville. — During the year 1863 the 
war went on with great activity. In the East there was not 
as much iighting as there had been the year before, but two 
great battles took place. One of these was at a place called 
Chancellorsville, in a very rough and wild country known as 
the Wilderness. General Hooker now had command of the 
Union army. He did not think it safe to attack General 
Lee at Fredericksburg, as General Burnside had done ; so 



208 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 




STONEWALL JACKSON. 



he led his army across the Eappahannock and Eapidan 
Rivers at a point above that city. 

General Lee hastened in the same direction, and the two 
armies met in the wild country of the Wilderness. A fierce 
battle took place in a woods so thick 
that the armies could hardly see each 
other. General Stonewall Jackson 
led a strong force to the left through 
the woods, and made a sudden at- 
tack on the right wing of the Union 
army. It was a complete surprise 
and this part of the army was driven 
back. The battle continued all the 
next day, and in the end Hooker 
was forced to retreat and to cross the 
river again. But Stonewall Jackson was killed, which was 
a great loss to the Confederate side. 

Lee marches North. — The battle of Chancellorsville took 
place on the 2d and 3d of May, 1863. In the latter part of 
June, General Lee left Fredericksburg and marched at great 
speed to the north. It was thought he wished to take the 
city of "Washington, and the Union army hastened to pro- 
tect it. But Lee kept on north till he reached Maryland, 
and then went on into Pennsylvania. 

What he intended to do no one knew. Many feared he 
was going to march on Philadelphia and take possession of 
that rich city. The Union army followed him as fast as it 
could. The two armies came together near the small town 
of Gettysburg, in Southern Pennsylvania. General Meade 
was now in command. He had brought the army north as 
fast as the soldiers could march. 

The Battle of Gettysburg'. — The advance ranks of the 
two armies came together on the 1st of July, and a severe 



THE UNITED STATES. 



209 



fight took place. The Confederates were the stronger, and 
the Union line fell back to the top of a long line of low 
hills called Cemetery Ridge, which was fortified, while the 
remainder of the army was hurried up. Here there was 
fought the greatest battle of the war. On July 2, General 
Lee made a desperate attack on the Union lines. Terrible 



^&LkSM ' -- 




BATTLE OF GETTYSBURG. 



fighting took place, and many thousands were killed and 
wounded, but at the end of the day the Union army still 
held Cemetery Ridge. 

The next day General Lee sent a large force against one 
point of the Union lines. If he had broken through at 
that point he would probably have gained the victory, but 
the charging force met with dreadful slaughter and was 
completely defeated. Most of those who were not killed 
were taken prisoners. A^ery few got back. That ended 

14 



210 A^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

the battle. General Lee led his men back to Viro-inia. He 
had suffered a great defeat. Many look on the battle of 
Gettysburg as the turning-point of the war.- 

The Siege of Vicksburg-. — While this was taking place 
in the East the Union army was gaining a great success in 
the West. General Grant had made up his mind to take 
Vicksburg and open the Mississippi River. General Sher- 
man had attacked this town the year before, but had lost 
many men and been driven back. In the spring Grant 
moved his army to a position south of the town, and marched 
up and began to besiege it. 

There were two Confederate armies, one in the town and 
one outside of it. The one outside was defeated and forced 
to retreat, and the one inside was closed in by long lines of 
earthworks that reached the river both below and above 
the town. A terrible fire was kept up by the forts upon the 
city, and the gun-boats on the river threw in bomb-shells 
and cannon-balls from the other side. 

There was dreadful distress within the city. iN'o one could 
get out of it, and hundreds were being killed within it. To 
make it worse, the food gave out. Mules and horses were 
killed and eaten. Soon there was a famine in Vicksburg. 
There was much sickness also, and the storm of cannon- 
balls never ceased. 

This could not continue. On the 4th of July, the same 
day that Lee retreated from Gettysburg, Vicksburg sur- 
rendered. Twenty-seven thousand prisoners fell into Gen- 
eral Grant's hands. This was a most important 4th of July 
for the people of the United States, for with it ended nearly 
all chance of success for the South. They fought on, but it 
was a losing game from that time. 

Chattanooga. — Port Hudson surrendered three days after- 
wards, and the whole length of the Mississippi was open to 



THE UNITED STATES. 211 

the Union gun-boats. The rest of the fighting in the West 
for that year took place near the town of Chattanooga, in 
Tennessee. A severe battle was fought in September, in 
which the Union army was defeated. It retreated to Chat- 
tanooga, while the Confederate army took possession of the 
mountains around the city, and shut the Union army in so 
closely that it became very short of food. 

General Grant was now made commander of all the 
Western armies. He came to Chattanooga and took charge 
there. General Bragg, the Confederate commander, held 
strong positions on Lookout Mountain and Missionary 
Ridge, each of which was nearly half a mile high and de- 
fended by strong forts. Yet the Union army charged up 
the hills through all the fire of these forts. It was a des- 
perate attempt, but the forts were taken and Bragg's army 
was driven out with great loss. This has always been con- 
sidered one of the most brilliant victories of the war. 

Grant Commander-in-Chief. — In 1864, General Grant was 
made commander-in-chief of all the military forces of the 
United States. He at once laid plans to have the armies 
of the country work together and bring the war to an end as 
quickly as possible. General Sherman was left in command 
of the Western army, while Grant came to Virginia and 
took control of General Meade's soldiers. 

Grant's Advance. — The grand advance of all the forces 
began early in May. In Virginia, Grant led his army across 
the Rapidan River into the thicket of the Wilderness. 
Here the battle between Hooker and Lee had taken place 
just a year before. Another desperate battle was now 
fought, in which neither army was victorious. Then General 
Grant marched towards Richmond and Lee followed him. 
Several severe battles took place, the last of them at Cold 
Harbor, near Richmond. This was a terrible encounter. 



212 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Lee's army was behind strong earthworks, which the Union 
soldiers could not enter, on account of the terrible fire of 
the Confederates. Grant lost ten thousand men killed and 
wounded, and Lee not more than a thousand. Then Grant 
moved south again, crossed the James River, and began a 
siege of Richmond and Petersburg. This siege lasted nine 
months. 

Sheridan's Ride. — In July, Lee sent General Early up the 
Shenandoah Valley to Maryland. Early marched along the 
Potomac, and for a time Washington was in danger. But 
General Sheridan was sent against him, and defeated him 
in several battles. Li one of these the striking event known 
as " Sheridan's Ride" took place. Early made a night 
attack on Sheridan's army at Fisher's Hill, and drove it 
back in great confusion. Sheridan was then at Winchester, 
twenty miles away. But he heard the distant roar of the 
battle, sprang to his horse, and rode at furious speed to the 
scene of conflict. Here he put himself at the head of his 
men, led them forward, and drove back the victorious Con- 
federates in a complete rout. Defeat was turned into victory 
almost in a moment, and Sheridan at once became a famous 
general. 

Sherman's March to the Sea. — In the West, General Sher- 
man did some remarkable work. He marched against the 
Confederate army, and battle after battle took place. At 
the end of every battle Sherman moved farther into Georgia, 
until he had taken the important city of Atlanta, which was 
a great railroad centre. 

General Hood, who now commanded the Confederate 
army, marched north, thinking that Sherman would follow 
him. But instead of that Sherman sent some help to Gen- 
eral Thomas, who had command in Tennessee, and then 
started on a march through Georgia, destroying the railroads 



THE UNITED STATES. 213 

as he went. Tliis was Sherman's famous "March to the 
Sea." He kept on until he reached the coast of Savannah, 
and took that city. 

Hood's Defeat at Nashville. — Meanwhile General Hood 
had marched into Tennessee and brought his army in front 
of Nashville, where General Thomas w^as in command. For 
two weeks he besieged that town, and then Thomas made 
a sudden assault on him. In the battle that followed Hood's 
army was terribly defeated, and so broken to pieces that it 
never came together again. This victory ended the war in 
all that portion of the South. 

Naval Victories. — During the year 1864 there were some 
important naval victories. There were several Confederate 
privateers, built in England, which had done much harm to 
American shipping. One of these, the Alabama, had taken 
sixty-five vessels. On June 19 the Alabama was met by the 
frigate Kearsarge, near the coast of France. A battle was 
fought, and at the end of two hours the Alabama was sunk. 

Another battle took place in Mobile Bay. It was defended 
by strong forts and an iron-plated vessel, but Admiral 
Farragut sailed in with a fleet of wooden ships and soon 
took the forts and the iron-clad. He sailed past the forts 
standing in the rigging of his ship, spy-glass in hand, with- 
out seeming to care for the terrible danger which he ran. 
This bold action gave great fame to the brave admiral. 

Sherman's March North. — With the opening of the year 
1865 it was clear to everybody that the end of the war was 
near at hand. The South was in a desperate situation. 
General Sherman had left Savannah and was marching 
north. He marched into South Carolina and took posses- 
sion of Charleston, and then kept on until he reached North 
Carolina. 

Lee's Retreat. — At the same time General Grant was 



214 ^-iV ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

pressing on Lee. Immense lines of earthworks had been 
built around Petersburg, but Grant's army kept moving 
southward until, on the 1st of April, it made an attack on 
the lower end of Lee's works, and won a victory at a place 
called Five Forks. General Lee then saw that he could hold 
on to Richmond no longer, and began a hasty march west- 
ward towards the mountains. 

The End of the War. — Grant followed him with the 
utmost speed, and soon Lee found himself surrounded by a 
far stronger army than his own. He could fight no longer, 
and on the 9th of April he surrendered to General Grant 
at Appomattox Court-House, Virginia. 

This surrender brought the war to an end. As soon as 
news of it spread through the South all the forces in the 
field laid down their arms, and the long and terrible civil 
war was over. 

Assassination of Lincoln. — Yet one dreadful event 
followed. On April 14, five days after General Lee's sur- 
render. President Lincoln w^as murdered. He was shot by 
an actor, named John Wilkes Booth, in a theatre at Wash- 
ington. This terrible deed filled the whole country with 
horror, and threw a deep shadow on the joy that had been 
felt at the close of the war. l^o more shocking event had 
ever taken place in America. 



PART VII.-QUESTIONS FOR EXAMINATION. 

I. What great question disturbed the nation before 1860 ? Where were 
slaves kept in the early days of the country? Why were they kept in the 
South after they were set free in the North ? What did many people in the 
North think about slavery? What law about slaves was passed in 1850? 
Did it settle the trouble ? Who became President in 1849 ? What happened 
to him ? Who became President in his place? Who was elected President 
in 1852? What new Territories were formed? What dispute arose about 



THE UNITED STATES. 215 

them ? What law wa.s passed ? "Was this in agreement with the Missouri 
Compromise? What happened in Kansas? What new party succeeded the 
Whig party? What two parties were there after 1856? What was the 
feeling ahout slavery at that time ? What can you tell about John Brown ? 
What did he do in 1859? What was the end of his raid? Who was elected 
President in 1860? When did he take his seat as President? What took 
place between his election and the time he took his seat ? 

II. What had been threatened in South Carolina if Lincoln should be 
elected? What is meant by seceding ? Explain the State Rights doctrine. 
What was done in South Carolina ? What other States followed this ex- 
ample? What did these States call themselves ? Whom did they elect as 
President and Vice-President? What fort was held by the United States in 
Charleston harbor? Who commanded there? Wtiat did the people of 
Charleston do ? What was the result ? What effect did this have on the 
country? What other States seceded ? How many did that make in all? 
Where did the armies gather ? Where and when was the first battle fought? 
What was the result ? What did Congress do then ? What was the princi- 
pal work done in 1861 ? In what three regions did fighting take place in 
1862? Where had the Confederates built forts in the West? By whom 
were they captured ? Where did a great battle take place in Tennessee ? 
Who commanded the two armies ? Describe the battle. Where did a battle 
take place on the last day of 1862? What was the result? What strong 
place did the Confederates hold on the Mississippi ? What was done by 
Admiral Farragut's fleet? What did the Union army wish to do on the 
Mississippi ? What successes had the Union army gained in the West ? 
Which side was successful in Virginia ? What city had been made the 
capital of the Confederate States ? Who was placed in command of the 
Union army? To what region did he lead it? What noted general was 
placed in command of the Confederate army ? Why was the Confederate 
general Jackson called " Stonewall" Jackson ? Where did he win victories ? 
What did General Lee decide to do ? Describe the seven days' fight. What 
did General Lee do next ? Where did a battle take place between Lee and 
Pope ? What was the result ? Where did Lee then lead his army ? Who 
followed him ? Where did the two armies meet ? What was the result of 
the battle of Antietam ? Who was next made commander of the Union 
army ? Where did a battle take place ? What was the result of this battle? 
What was being done on the coast ? What ports did the Union fleet block- 
ade? What did the blockade runners do? What kind of vessels did the 
Confederates prepare ? How was the Merrimac strengthened ? What did it 
do to the wooden fleet in Norfolk harbor? What kind of vessels had the 
Union side been building ? What was one of these iron vessels called ? 



216 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Why? What wa? it named? When did it reach Norfolk harbor? Do- 
scribc the ti^lit with the Merrimac. What did this battle of iron-clad ships 
prove? With what important event did 1862 end? What was the first 
object of the war? Why did the President wish to free the slaves? On 
what day were they declared free ? What was the proclamation called ? 
How did it hurt the South and help the North ? What is said of slavery at 
the end of the war ? 

III. What great battle was fought in Virginia in 18G3 ? Who commanded 
the Union army ? In what way did Stonewall Jackson surprise Hooker's 
army ? What happened to Jackson ? What was the result of the battle ? 
What did General Lee do in June? What was thought of his intentions? 
What did the Union army do ? Who now commanded it ? Where did the 
armies meet ? On what three days was the battle of Gettysburg fought ? 
Describe the battle of the first day, of the second day, of the third day. 
What was the result of the battle? What is thought of it? What was 
General Grant doing in the West ? Why did he wish to take Vicksburg ? 
How did he enclose the Confederate army in Vicksburg? What happened 
in that city ? On what day did Vicksburg surrender? How many prisoners 
were taken? What was the effect of the victories at Gettysburg and Vicks- 
burg on the Southern cause ? Where did the rest of the fighting in the West 
take place in 1863? What happened to the Union army in September? 
How was it situated in Chattanooga ? Who was made commander of all 
the Western armies ? What great battles were fought at Chattanooga ? 
What was the result? What position was given to General Grant in 1864 ? 
What plans did he lay ? Who was left in command of the Western army ? 
When did the general advance of the armies begin ? Where did Grant lead 
the Army of Virginia ? What battles took place ? What was the result of 
the battle at Cold Harbor ? What did Grant do then ? How long did the 
siege of Petersburg last? What events took place in the Shenandoah Val- 
ley? Describe "Sheridan's Ride." What did General Sherman do in the 
West? Where did he march after taking Atlanta? What is this march 
called ? What did General Hood do ? Who was the Union commander 
at Nashville? What happened to Hood's army? What important naval 
battle took place in 1864? What harm had the Alabama done? Describe 
the naval battle in Mobile Bay. What did Sherman do in 1865 ? On what 
day did General Grant break through General Lee's lines ? What did Lee 
do then ? Where and when did Lee's surrender take place ? AVhat effect 
did this have? What dreadful event happened soon after? How did it 
aflFect the people ? 



THE UNITED STATES!. 217 



PART VIII. 

THE ERA OP PEACE AND PROGRESS. 

I.— EVENTS SINCE THE WAR. 

The Evil of the "War. — The great war was at an end. 
What had been its cost to the country and what good had 
come of it ? Let us see. In the first place a vast multitude 
of men had been taken from their homes to live the life 
and pass through the dangers of warfare. On the Union 
side more than two and a half millions of men had been in 
the army. At the end of the war there were still more than 
a million in the ranks. We do not know how many there 
were on the Confederate side. There were not nearly as 
many as on the Union side, probably not more than half the 
number. In the Union armies more than three hundred 
thousand men were killed, or died of wounds and disease, 
and the losses of the Confederate armies are supposed to 
have been as great. 

This was a frightful slaughter, and to it must be added all 
those who died after the war from wounds, or other effects 
of the dangerous life of a soldier. The money cost of the 
war was also very great. At the end of the war the United 
States had a debt of $2,750,000,000. The States and the 
cities also had heavy debts. We do not know how much 
the Confederates States had spent, but they must have used a 
very great amount of money and materials. And this money 
loss was only part of the loss. There was not much damage 



218 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

done in the ITortli, for nearly all the fighting had been in 
the Southern States. But in the South there was ruin 
everywhere. Railroads had been destroyed, towns burned, 
and much other damage done. It would take years to make 
up the losses of the war. Everybody in the South was poor, 
and they had lost all their slaves, who were valued at a 
great sum of money. But in the North scarcely any harm 
had been done to city or country, business of every kind had 
been good, and many had grown rich during the war. The 
South was in a dreadful condition, but the ISTorth showed 
hardly any signs of injury from the great conflict. 

The Good of the "War. — Great courage and skill hud been 
shown on both sides. It was made clear that the Ameri- 
cans north and south are a brave people; they had more 
respect for each other than ever before. So much good 
was accomplished. The war, as we have said, was not fought 
to abolish slavery, but to preserve the Union. Its purpose 
was to keep tlie nation together, and in this it had suc- 
ceeded. It will be long again before any State tries to 
secede. 

Slavery was abolished, but this had been done as an 
act of war, to help the ISTorth to conquer in the great con- 
test. Yet it was an act that could not be undone. The 
slaves had been set free, and free they must continue while 
America remains a nation. The South would not have them 
as slaves again if it could. The people there have found 
that they are better oflf Avithout slavery. Thus the great 
question which so long divided the nation is set at rest for-r 
ever. This was the greatest good that came of the war. 
The civilization of America is to-day a much higher one 
than it was thirty years ago. 

Reconstruction. — Let us go on to see what followed the 
war. We have told how President Lincoln was assassinated. 



THE UNITED STATES. 219 

Nothing ever took place in this country that caused more 
grief and horror. The people of the North had come to 
look on Abraham Lincoln as a man as great and noble as 
George Washington, and it was a terrible shock to them 
that he should be killed at the end of his great work. Few 
things ever happened in the country that caused so much 
excitement and angry feeling, and the murder of Lincoln 
made the difficult questions that followed the war much 
harder to settle. 

He had just been elected to a second term as President, 
and the Vice-President, Andrew Johnson, now took his 
place. The government had serious work before it. The 
war was over, but it had left everything in disorder. Eleven 
States had declared themselves out of the Union. They 
were to be brought back again. How was this to be done ? 

The slaves were now free in all the States. An amend- 
ment to the Constitution had been adopted on April 8, 1864, 
setting free all slaves within the United States. This is 
known as the Thirteenth Amendment. The seceded States 
had to agree to it before they could come back. Another 
amendment, the Fourteenth, was offered, and was adopted 
in July, 1868. This gave negroes all the rights of white 
people, except the right to vote. The seceded States had to 
agree to this also. 

The President impeached. — President Johnson objected 
to these amendments, and to the other laws passed by Con- 
gress on the same subject. He vetoed them all. This made 
much bitter feeling between him and Congress, and in the 
end he was impeached; that is, he was accused of not 
doing the duty he had sworn to do, and was tried before the 
Senate, which acted as a court. The trial caused great ex- 
citement in the country. The Senate heard all that was to 
be said on both sides, and decided that the President had 



220 



^.V ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



not acted contrary to his oath of office, and therefore was 
not guilty of the charges against him. This was the only 
time an American President has been tried for failure to do 
his duty. 

The Suffrage Amendment. — In 1870 another amendment 
to the Constitution was adopted. It is known as the Fif- 
teenth Amendment. It gave to negroes, both those who 
had lately been slaves and those who had always been free, 
the right to vote. Under this law every American of the 




A STAUE-RANCH ON THE WYOMINCi I'l.AINS. 



proper age, except women and Indians, can vote. One by- 
one the seceded States agreed to these amendments, and 
were taken back into the Union. Virginia, Mississippi, and 
Texas were the last. These came back in 1870. 

Indian "Wars. — During this time there was much trouble 
with the Western Indians, and travel across the plains be- 
came very dangerous. The Indians east of the Mississippi 
had been quieted long before, but settlers were pushing 




fe=*^Sn^y /S^^VV^f't 






-I r? /( it /^ /^L/Jy^ UP- ; 




o 













THE UNITED STATES. 221 

everywhere into the Western country, and many of them 
treated the Indians very unjustly, Avho in return killed the 
settlers and burned their houses. This brought on several 
Indian wars, and it took a great deal of fighting to put down 
the tribes. Many persons were killed on both sides, but in 
the end most of the Indians were placed on reservations, or 
lands set aside for them. Here they are taken care of by 
the government. Many of these reservations are in the 
Indian Territory, but there are others in all the States and 
Territories west of the Mississippi River, and some in the 
States east of that river. 

Alaska. — In 1867 another addition was made to the terri- 
tory of the United States. The region known as Alaska was 
bought from Russia. It is a large country, but most of it 
is of little use, on account of the coldness of the climate. 
Yet many furs come from there, and on some islands near 
the coast the valuable fur seals are found in great numbers. 
The fisheries are also of great value. Rich deposits of gold 
have been found there, and mines opened, and in many re- 
spects Alaska is an important addition to the country. 

The Chicago Fire. — In 1868, General Grant was elected to 
the Presidency, and took his seat on the 4th of March, 1869. 
He remained President for eight years. In these eight 
years some important events happened. One of these was 
the Chicago fire, the greatest conflagration that has ever 
been known in America. It is doubtful if any fire in any 
other city of the world ever destroyed so much property. 
It began on October 8, 1871, and burned for three days. 
The part of the city burned was four and a half miles long 
and a mile -wide. One hundred thousand people were left 
without homes, and two hundred were killed. The money 
loss was about two hundred million dollars. In the same 
year great forest fires broke out in the neighboring States. 



222 ^^' ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

In Wisconsin many villages were burned and fifteen hun- 
dred people perished. 

In November of the next year a terrible fire broke out in 
Boston, which destroyed property valued at seventy-five 
million dollars. Yet so great was the activity of the people 
that in a few years both those cities were built up again, 
and very little trace of the fires remained. 

The Alabama Claims. — Another great event which hap- 
pened while Grant was President was the settlement of the 
" Alabama claims." We must explain what this means. In 
the last chapter we told how the Confederate privateer, the 
Alabama, had sailed from England, and captured and burned 
many American merchant vessels on the ocean. For this the 
United States blamed England. The Alabama was built in 
England, and it was said that the British government had no 
right to let it set sail, and that England ought to pay for all 
the damage that this vessel had done. 

The dispute might have brought on a war between 
America and England, but both nations agreed to let it be 
settled by a commission of men chosen by the two countries. 
This was done, and the commission found that England was 
in the wrong, and must pay damages to the United States. 
The amount was sixteen million two hundred and fifty thou- 
sand dollars. This was the first great question between 
nations that was settled in this way. Such questions are 
generally decided by war, but it would be far better and 
cheaper to decide them all in a peaceful manner. 

The Business Panic. — In 1873 a great business panic 
began. It was brought on in the same way as that of 1837 
had been. There was wild speculation everywhere, many 
families lived in great luxury, many more railroads were 
built than the country needed, and every man in business 
fancied that he was growing rich. Suddenly some great 



THE UNITED STATES. 



223 



business houses proved unable to pay their debts, and this 
quickly brought others into the same trouble. The difficulty 
rapidly spread over the whole country. Banks failed, fac- 
tories stopped running, the building of railroads came to an 
end, money was not to be had, and thousands of people who 
had believed themselves in the way to grow rich found 
themselves poor. For the working people there was very 




'K.. 

MEMORIAL HALL. 



little to do. It was the worst business trouble the country 
had ever seen, for there were many more to feel it than in 
the past. Five or six years elapsed before all the effects of 
the panic passed away and business became as good as it 
had been before 1873. 

The Centennial Exhibition. — There was one more in- 
teresting event while Grant was President. In 1876 it 
would be just one hundred years from the date in which 



224 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

America had declared herself free, and the [»eople deter- 
mined to celebrate this event in a grand way. So it was 
decided to hold a great exhibition in Philadelphia, where 
the Declaration of Independence had been signed. Large 
buildings were prepared for a world's fair, and goods were 
sent from every part of the country and from every foreign 
nation. Millions of people visited it, some of them coming 
from distant parts of the earth. Nothing of the kind had 
ever been seen in America, and it was a great lesson to the 
people of this country. They learned there in what things 
America was superior to Europe, and in what Europe was 
superior to America. Every one saw that in machinery no 
other country could surpass the United States, but that in 
art Europe was far in advance. But this is not so much 
the case to-day. Great progress has been made in American 
art since that time ; her people have been wise enough to 
profit by the lesson of the Centennial Exhibition. 

The Election of 1876. — In November, 1876, there was an 
election for President that caused much feeling. The Re- 
publican candidate was Rutherford B. Hayes, the Dem- 
ocratic, Samuel J. Tilden. The election was so close that 
there was a dispute as to who had been elected. Congress 
was not able to settle this, so a commission of fifteen men 
was chosen from the members of Congress and the judges 
of the Supreme Court. This commission decided that 
Hayes was elected President, so he took his seat on the 4th 
of March, 1877. 

Several tilings of importance took place during his term 
of office. While the war was going on gold had become 
of more value than paper money. From the beginning of 
1862 it had not been used as money, and all the business of 
the country was done with bank-notes. This continued until 
1879. On the 1st of January of that year the government 



THE UNITED STATES. 225 

began to pay out gold to its creditors, and since then paper 
money has been worth as much as gold. 

In 1878 yellow fever broke out in many of the cities of 
the South, and raged so fiercely that thousands of the peo- 
ple died. Business could not be carried on, so there was 
much suffering from this cause also. The fever appeared 
again the next year. The people of the l^orth did much to 
help the sufl:erers in the South during this terrible period. 
Money, food, and other necessaries were given in large 
amounts, doctors and nurses went South at the peril of their 
lives, and the warm feeling of sympathy that was shown did 
much to hasten the growing good feeling between the two 
sections of the country. 

Garfield's Election. — When the time came for the next 
Presidential election (1880) the Republicans nominated Gen- 
eral James A. Garfield, the Democrats, General W. S. Han- 
cock. Garfield was elected. The new President soon 
showed that he Avas going to do what he thought was for 
the good of the country. When men asked for ofiices he 
did not trouble himself to know what they had done for the 
party, but was careful to find out if they knew anything 
about the work of the oflice, and could be trusted to do 
their duty. 

The Assassination of Garfield. — This gave great offence 
to some persons who wanted offices, but were not fit to do 
the work required. One of these men, named Charles J. 
Guiteau, became so angry that he resolved to kill the Presi- 
dent. On the 2d of July, 1881, four months after Garfield 
was inaugurated, this man came up behind him in the rail- 
road depot at Washington, drew a pistol, and shot him in 
the back. 

The President fell, severely wounded. The news spread 
rapidly over the country, and caused as mucli horror and 

15 



226 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

excitement as had been occasioned by the death of Lin- 
coln. Garfield did not die at once. He lay sick for more 
than three months. During this interval every one felt 
the greatest sympathy for him, and when he died, on the 
19th of September, it was as if every family in the land 
had lost one of its dearest members. The wounded Presi- 
dent had been so brave and patient in his suffering that the 
people of all parties had grown to love him. The whole 
people of the country seemed watching by his bedside, for 
the telegraph brought them news almost as quickly as if 
they had been there, and nothing has ever shown more 
clearly the wonderful character of the telegraphic service 
than the way in which the story of the dying President 
was laid every morning before the anxious and sympathetic 
nation. 

Election of Cleveland. — After the death of Garfield the 
Vice-President, Chester A. Arthur, became President, and 
filled the office till March 4, 1885. On that day Grover 
Cleveland took his seat as President. He was elected as the 
candidate of the Democratic party, and was the first Demo- 
cratic President since 1856. 

In the Presidential election of 1888, Benjamin Harrison, 
the Republican candidate, was chosen, and took his seat on 
March 4, 1889. He is the grandson of General Harrison, 
who had been made President in 1841. 

The Charleston Earthquake. — In 1886 there occurred an 
event that was in some respects more terrible than the 
Chicago fire. A great earthquake took place. The centre 
of its force was in South Carolina, and the city of Charles- 
ton was so shaken that a great part of it fell in ruins to the 
ground. Nothing so dreadful of this kind had ever been 
known in the United States. A single minute turned a happy 
and prosperous city into a distressed and ruined one. The 



THE UNITED STATES. 227 

people ran in terror from their falling houses, but many were 
killed in the houses and in the streets. The earth cracked 
open here and there, and mud and stones were thrown into 
the air. The people of Charleston lost ten million dollars 
by this earthquake shock, besides all the suifering they 
endured. 

The Chicago Anarchists. — For a number of years there 
has been much trouble in this country between working 
people and their employers. The working people have 
joined into strong societies, and there have been many great 
strikes for wages. In Chicago, on May 1, 1886, there was 
a strike in favor of making eight hours the time of a day's 
work. This led to an awful scene of murder. There was 
a large party of foreigners in Chicago who wanted to do 
away with all law and order, and declared that no man had 
a right to be richer than other men, but that all ought to be 
alike in this respect. 

During the eight-hour strike there was held a meeting of 
these anarchists, as they were called, which the police tried to 
break up, but while they were attempting to do so some one in 
the crowd threw among them a bomb charged with dynamite. 
Dynamite is an explosive substance which is much more 
violent in its action than gunpowder. The bomb burst in 
their midst and did terrible damage. Six of the policemen 
were killed and sixty-one wounded. The police drew their 
pistols and fired on the mob, and many of the anarchists, in 
their turn, were killed and wounded. Seven were arrested 
and found guilty of murder. Of these one killed himself, 
four were hung, and the others sent to prison for life. 

The Johnstown Disaster. — On May 31, 1889, a terrible 
event took place. During a severe rain-storm a dam gave 
way on a branch of the Conemaugh River, in AV^estern 
l*ennsylvania. The whole valley of the river was swept 



228 ^^' ELEMENTARY IIISTORV OF 

with a destructive flood, and the city of Johnstown and 
several smaller places were carried away on the raging 
waters. Five or six thousand people were drowned and 
many millions of dollars' worth of property destroyed. ISTo 
accident so dreadful in loss of life had ever happened in 
America before. Much food and clothing and great sums 
of money were given by charitable people to aid the suf- 
ferers, but the terrible loss of life no money could repay, 
and the Johnstown flood will long be remembered in the 
history of destructive events. 

The Pan-American Congress. — In the latter part of 1889 
and the early part of 1890 a very important meeting was 
held in the city of Washington. Delegates from all the 
nations of North and South America came together, to see 
what could be done to aid commerce and harmony between 
these nations, and to do away with war. It was decided 
to try and settle all quarrels between them by peaceful 
means, to take measures for the improvement of trade, to 
build a railroad through all tho8e nations, and to do other 
things for the benefit of the American peoples. A sur- 
vey for such a railroad, to run through North and South 
America, has been partly made, and it is probable that the 
road will in time be built. 

The McKinley Tariff. — In 1890 a tarifl" bill was passed 
by Congress, which put a higher tax or duty on many 
articles brought from other countries. It is known as the 
McKinley tarift*, because it was offered by Mr. McKinley, 
of Ohio. It was hoped that it would be a great help to 
manufactures in America, by keeping out foreign goods 
from this country, but there is a wide difference of opinion 
about this, for many say that the American people would 
be better off' with a low tariff". This is to-day the great 
question in American politics. 



THE UNITED STATES. 229 

Reciprocity in Trade. — The McKinley Tariff had in it 
an important provision for free trade, which had been ad- 
vised by the Pan-American Congress. This was known 
by the long word reciprocity. It was decided that sugar, 
coffee, tea, and hides, which are the leading products of 
the Central and South American countries, should come 
into the United States without paying duty, if the nations 
sending them would take certain of our products free of 
duty. Most of the American nations did so, and free trade 
in their principal products existed for a time between nearly 
all the countries of America. 

The Silver Bill. — For many years the United States had 
been coining silver money very actively. In 1878 Con- 
gress passed what is known as the Bland Silver Bill, under 
which the mints had to make a great many silver dollars 
every year. In 1890 this bill was replaced by the Sher- 
man Silver Bill, which required the United States Treas- 
ury to buy four million five hundred thousand ounces of 
silver every month. In the spring and summer of 1893 
the country was in danger of a business panic like that of 
1873. Money became scarce, the banks refused to lend 
money to their customers, many banks, merchants, and 
manufacturers failed, and thousands of people had no work 
to do. Most of the people thought that this was caused by 
the great quantity of silver stored up in the mints, which 
no other country would accept as money, and President 
Cleveland called an extra session of Congress, to meet on 
August 7, 1893, for the purpose of trying to change the law 
which required silver to be bought. As a result the Sher- 
man Silver Bill was repealed, and since that time no silver 
has been bought by the government. But there was much 
silver then in the treasury, and this continued to be made 
into dollars and other silver coins. 



230 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

New States. — In 1889 four new States were added to the 
Union. The large Territory of Dakota was divided into 
two States, named North Dakota and South Dakota, and 
the Territories of Washington and Montana were made 
States. In 1890 two other States were added, Idaho and 
Wyoming, and Utah in 1896. These make the total num- 
ber of States forty-five. There are still four Territories, 
Alaska, Arizona, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. 

The election of members of Congress in 1890 gave the 
Democratic party a great victory, the House of Representa- 
tives gaining a Democratic majority of one hundred and 
fifty-three members. In the Senate the Republicans still 
kept a majority. 

Another important event of 1890 was the United States 
Census. The count of the population showed that there 
were in this country sixty-two millions six hundred and 
twenty-two thousand two hundred and fifty people, an in- 
crease of more than twelve millions since 1880, and of 
about fifty-nine millions since the first census in 1790, a 
century before. 

Copyright Bill. — In 1891 Congress passed an important 
bill, known as the Copyright Bill. Ever since the country 
was established the writers of books had had no protection 
in foreign lands. Any Englishman could publish and sell an 
American book, and any American could do the same 
with an English book, and pay the author nothing. The 
Copyright Bill put an end to this, and gave protection to 
authors. 

Among the changes of the past few years was a great in- 
crease in the pension list, both in the number of persons 
receiving pensions, and the amount paid them. The sum 
now paid out every year for pensions is not far from one 
hundred and forty million dollars, much the greatest sum 



THE UNITED STATES. 



231 



ever paid for this purpose. Changes were also made in the 
immigration laws, so as to keep out of this country all 
persons not likely to make good and useful citizens. 

Alaskan Seal Fisheries. — For a number of years there had 
been a dispute between the United States and England, on 
account of Canadian fishing-vessels killing the fur seals 
which make their homes on the islands of Bering Sea, in 
Alaska, and which the United States claim as their own 
property. After many vessels had been seized, and there 
had been much bitter feeling, the question was given over 




FUR SEALS, ALASKA. 



to arbitrators to settle, both nations agreeing to accept the 
decision of the court of arbitration, whose members were 
chosen from several nations. The arbitrators decided that 
the United States did not own the seals when found far 
from the islands, though it laid down a set of rules for the 
protection of these animals. But it is found that these 
rules do not work very well, and if something else is not 
done to save the seals they will soon be all killed. 

The Presidential Election of 1892. — In 1892 the Repub- 
licans nominated for the next term of office Benjamin Har- 
rison, w^io was then President. The Democrats nominated 



232 ^N ELEMENTARY HIHTORF OF 

Grover Cleveland, who had been President from 1885 to 
1889. Another prominent candidate for the nomination 
was James G. Blaine, Secretary of State under President 
Harrison. He was not nominated, which was perhaps 
fortunate, as his health was very bad, and he died two 
months after the election. When the election took place 
it was found that Cleveland was elected, with the large 
majority over Harrison of one hundred and thirty elec- 
toral votes. The Democratic party also gained a majority 
in both houses of Congress, for the first time in many 
years. 

The American Quadricentennial. — By this long word is 
meant the end of the fourth century since the discovery of 
America by Columbus, which took place on the 12th of 
October, 1492. It was decided to make it the occasion for 
a great World's Fair, to be held in the city of Chicago in 
1893, as the buildings could not be got ready in 1892. The 
anniversary was celebrated in October, 1892, in New York 
by great processions, naval, military, and civic, and in 
Chicago by the dedication of the "World's Fair buildings. 
All through the country there were parades and festivities. 

The Fair was opened at Chicago on May 10, 1893. Mag- 
nificent preparations had been made for it, the buildings 
being of very great size and very beautiful in appearance. 
In all there were more than one hundred and fifty build- 
ings. One of these, called the Building of Manufactures 
and Liberal Arts, covered more than thirty acres, and was 
the largest exhibition building ever erected. The build- 
ings cost nearly twenty million dollars ; they were covered 
with a substance that made them look like white marble, 
and their architecture was very fine. They were filled 
with splendid exhibits, and the Fair was very successful, 
many millions of people visiting it. It is looked u^jou 



THE UNITED STATES. 

as the largest, finest, and most beautiful World's Fair ever 
held. 

The Wilson Tariff. — The Democratic party was now in 
power, and the new Congress, after repealing the Silver 
Purchase Act, took action upon the tariff. The McKinley 
tariff of 1890 had laid high duties on imported goods, which 
was believed by the Democrats to be injurious to the country 
and a wrong to the people. Congress, therefore, in 1894, 
passed a new tariff bill, known as the Wilson Tariff, which 
put lower duties on many articles. A tax was also laid on 
the incomes of the rich, but this the Supreme Court said 
was unconstitutional, and could not be law. 

The Strikes. — In 1892 a terrible strike of workmen took 
place in the iron-works at Homestead, near Pittsburg, Penn- 
sylvania, at which many people were killed. Another great 
strike broke out in Chicago in 1894 against the Pullman 
Car Company. Severe riots followed and much property 
was destroyed, and in the end the President had to send 
United States soldiers to force the rioters to obey the laws. 

Utah made a State. — Utah had been settled by the Mor- 
mons, a people whose religious belief permitted them to 
have more than one wife. This was against the laws of the 
country, and Congress passed an act to prevent it in 1882. 
In 1890 the Mormons consented to give up polygamy, as 
the custom was called. There were many people in Utah 
who were not Mormons, and who wished it to be made a 
State. As the laws had been obeyed, this was now granted, 
an Act was passed for this purpose in 1893, and on January 
4, 1896, President Cleveland proclaimed the admission of 
Utah as the forty-fifth State of the Union. 

Venezuela. — A dispute had long existed between Great 
Britain and Venezuela about the boundary line between 
that country and British Guiana. Many persons believed 



234 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY^ OF 

that Great Britain was taking from Venezuela more land 
than she had any just claim to, and in 1895 the President 
asked Congress to interfere in the matter. Long debate and 
much bad feeling followed, but in the end Great Britain 
agreed to let the matter be settled by arbitration. This was 
a great triumph for the United States, which is now looked 
upon as the protector of the weaker nations of America. 

The Election of 1896.— In 1896 the Eepublicans nomi- 
nated William McKinley, of Ohio, for the Presidency. The 
Democrats and the Populists (a new party) nominated Wil- 
liam J. Bryan, of Nebraska. The Populist party held that 
the government should buy and coin all the silver that was 
oiFered, and most of the Democrats thought the same, though 
some of them said, with the Republicans, that only gold 
ought to be coined. McKinley was the choice of the ma- 
jority, and became President March 4, 1897. 

A New Tariff. — The President at once called Congress 
together to consider what should be done to raise more 
revenue for the country, and advised that higher duties 
should be placed on imported goods, as he thought this 
would both put more money in the treasury and help busi- 
ness. A new tariff, higher in its rates than the Wilson tariff, 
was accordingly passed, and became law, July 24, 1897. 

Other Events. — Two interesting events which took place 
in 1897 were the dedication of General Grant's tomb at 
New York on April 27, and the unveiling of the monument 
of Washington, erected by the Society of the Cincinnati, at 
Philadelphia, on May 15. Both of these were attended with 
great processions and imposing ceremonies. On May 1 
began an attractive exhibition of American industries at 
Nashville, Tennessee, in honor of the Centennial Anniver- 
sary of the admission of the State into the Union. In the 
spring of 1897 took place the greatest flood in the Missis- 



THE UNITED STATES. 235 

sippi River ever known, thousands of square miles of rich 
farming land being overflowed. 

II.— KECENT PKOGKESS IN AMERICA. 

The Disbanding- of the Armies. — When the war came to 
an end there were more than a million of men in the armies 
of the North. These were trained soldiers who knew all 
about the art of war, but had long been removed from the 
arts of peace. In old times such an army would have set 
up a kingdom and put their leader on the throne. Their 
generals would have become nobles, and spent a life of pride 
and idleness while making the people work for them. 

What did the army of America do ? As fast as the sol- 
diers were paid off they laid down their arms and returned 
home, where they at once went to work to make a peaceful 
living. They became farmers, mechanics, merchants, etc., 
as they had been before the war. The generals began to 
make their living in the same quiet way as the men from 
the ranks. Even General Grant and General Lee were not 
too proud to work to earn a living. In a year or two after 
the war the armies had disappeared. Only the few soldiers 
were left that were needed to act as police for the nation. 

This was a remarkable result. In the countries of Europe 
to-day there are millions of soldiers, though these countries 
are at peace. Twenty-five thousand soldiers are enough to 
answer all the purposes of the United States, and these are 
principally employed in keeping the Indians in order. The 
people of America are not forced to give part of their wages 
to keep up great and useless armies, and this is one reason 
why American workmen are so much better off than those 
of Europe. 

The Electric Cable. — It is in the arts of peace that 
America is now winning its victories. Let us see what some 



236 ^^V ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

of these have been. One of these victories of peace came 
just after the war. An electric wire, or cable, was laid 
under the ocean from America to Europe in 1866, and peo- 
ple began to send messages to one another under two thou- 
sand miles of sea. Since that time other cables have been 
laid between Europe and America, and every day now our 
papers print long accounts of wliat is taking place in Europe. 
They get their news from that great distance more quickly 
than they could have got news from a place ten miles away 
in the last century. 

Telegraph Extension. — Tn the United States telegraph 
wires now spread everywhere, and everything of importance 
that takes place is told in the newspapers of the whole 
country a few hours afterwards. There are more than one 
hundred and ninety thousand miles of telegraph wire, three 
times as much as in any other country, and enough to go 
seven times around the earth. 

Signal Service. — One of the great benefits of the tele- 
graph is its use in the signal service. Every day the 
state of the weather in all parts of the country is tele- 
graphed to Washington. The reports thus received are 
carefully studied, and the kind of weather that is likely to 
come is made out and telegraphed in all directions. Warn- 
ings of storms thus sent are of great use to sea-captains and 
farmers, and there is no one who does not take interest in 
them. Along the coast there are life-saving stations, for the 
rescue of sailors and passengers from wrecked ships. These 
have proved of great service, and many lives have been 
saved by their brave crews. 

Electrical Discoveries. — Electricity has been made useful 
in many other ways. The streets of many of our cities and 
towns are brightly lighted with it, and stores and houses 
also use it for this purpose. It is used to run machinery and 



THE UNITED STATES. 



237 



locomotives. By the invention of the telephone men are 
able to talk with one another over many miles of distance 
in the same tones they use in talking face to face. All this 
is very wonderful. It seems the work of magic. Yet it 
is as true as wonderful, and is the work of thought and 
industry, not of magic. 

Railroad Extension. — The railroads have made as great 
progress as the telegraphs. The greatest feat in railroad 




LIFE-SAVING STATION. 



building that the world had known up to that time was fin- 
ished in 1869. This was the Central Pacific Railroad, from 
Omaha, across the great plains of the West and the Rocky 
Mountains, to San Francisco. The last spike of this rail- 
road was driven in May, 1869, at Ogden, in the Territory of 
Utah. This spike was connected with the telegraph wires, 
so that, as the blows of the hammer fell on it, they were 
heard in the telegraph offices of the principal cities of the 



238 ^^ ELEMENTARY^ HISTORY OF 

East. This was another great triumph of the telegraph, for 
these offices were thousands of miles away from where the 
spike was being driven. Since then two other Pacific rail- 
roads, the Northern and the Southern Pacific, have been 
built. A traveller can now go from New York to San 
Francisco, a distance of three thousand three hundred miles, 
in five days. He can cross the ocean to Europe in nearly 
as short a time in the fast steamships which now start at 
frequent intervals. 

There are now over one hundred and eighty thousand 
miles of railroad in the United States, — more than in all 
Europe, and nearly as much as in all the world outside 
of this country. These railroads have been a wonderful aid 
to travel. Sixty years ago it took a person nearly a year 
to go from Oregon to Washington ; now he can do it in 
a few days. Thousands of persons travel to-day for every 
one who did so a century ago. Then a man would make his 
will if he were going from New York to Boston ; now 
he would hardly think of doing so if he were going to 
China. Railroads are also of the greatest use in carrying 
goods of all kinds from one part of the country to another. 
Without them it would be impossible for the great cities 
of America to exist, for they could not got the food their 
people need. 

Postal Service. — It is wonderful how letter-writing has 
grown in America since the days of the railroad. In 1790 
there were only seventy-five post-offices in the United 
States; now there are over seventy thousand. Then it 
took two days for a letter to go from Philadelphia to New 
York ; now it takes two hours. Then the postage was ten 
cents up to forty miles, and twenty-five cents for distances 
over five hundred miles ; now it is two cents to all parts 
of the country, and fi.ve cents to Europe. 



THE UNITED STATES. 239 

Electric Cars. — For many years past the people of our 
cities have ridden through the streets in cars drawn by 
horses. Electricity has now taken the place of horses for 
this purpose, and cars filled with passengers may be seen 
darting along in a way that seems magical, for no eye can 
behold the power that makes them move. These trolley 
cars, as they are called, run also far into the country and 
from city to city, and in some places large engines are 
moved by electric power. Many think that the travel of 
the future will be largely done in electric cars and that the 
steam locomotive will pass away. 

Bicycles. — There is another favorite mode of travel in 
our days, one in which the traveller himself supplies the 
power. This is the bicycle, whose wheels are moved by 
the muscles of the rider. It has been improved until it 
can go as fast as the horse, and travel much farther in a 
day. Hundreds of thousands of these " silent steeds," as 
some have called them, are now in use in every part of the 
country and by all classes of people. Men, women, and 
children take useful exercise in this way, and the flying 
wheel is one of the most common objects seen in city 
streets and on country roads. 

Motor Carriages. — The horse is of much less use than 
of old. iSTot only electric cars and bicycles have taken the 
place of this useful animal, but carriages to run without 
horses are coming into use. These are moved by small 
motors, worked by electricity, steam, or other sources of 
powder. Many of them are used in France, and other coun- 
tries are employing them. In time they may become as 
common as ordinary carriages are to-day. 

The New Navy. — In the past battle-ships were built of 
wood and had high masts, with a great sweep of sail. At 
present war-vessels are covered with thick plates of steel, 



240 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



and are moved by powerful steam-engines. The fleets that 
once proudly swept the seas would soon be sent to the bot- 
tom by the great rifled cannons now in use. The nations 
of Europe have built themselves large navies of this kind. 
The United States long had only the old-fashioned moni- 
tors of the civil war, but is now building a new navy, some 
of whose vessels are among the swiftest and strongest in 




MODERN BATTLE-SHIPS. 



the world. It is still small, but new vessels are added 
every year, and in time this country is likely to have as 
fine and powerful a navy as any in the world. 

Increase of Population. — The population of the United 
States in 1790, when the first census was taken, was less 
than four millions. The census of 1890 made it about 
sixty-two and a half millions, — an addition of nearly sixty 
millions in a century. This is a great increase. If this rate 
of growth continues the United States will soon have the 
greatest population of any civilized country on the earth. 
The people of Europe are coming here in multitudes every 



THE UNITED STATES. 241 

year; often more than half a million in a year. These 
spread over all parts of the country, and are very useful 
as farmers, laborers, and mechanics. Many of them, how- 
ever, are very ignorant and do not make good citizens. 
There are laws to prevent paupers and some other classes 
from entering the country, and it is proposed to keep out 
all who cannot read or write. Other restrictions will, no 
doubt, in time be made, so that only the more desirable 
classes of immigrants can be admitted. 

The Indians. — Many Chinese also have come to America, 
but the laws do not permit any more to enter the country. 
They did not make good citizens, and were arriving in such 
numbers that it became necessary to stop them. The In- 
dians, who once had possession of the whole country, are 
now collected on reservations in the West. They are so few 
in number that these reservations are very thinly peopled. 
There has been no fighting for several years with the In- 
dians, and perhaps may be no more. They are provided with 
food by the government, but many of them are working for 
themselves. Some of the tribes in the Indian Territory are 
becoming civilized. They hold their lands in common ; but 
it is proposed to divide them into farms, and give each 
Indian family its own farm. It is thought that they will 
become more contented and industrious if this is done. 

One of the great means taken to civilize the Indians is by 
education. Schools have been started at various points, m 
which Indian children are taught the elements of knowledge, 
the use of tools, and the benefits of industry. These schools 
are proving very useful, and many young Indians are going 
back to their tribes with trained hands and cultivated minds. 
In a few years these young men will become leaders in the 
tribes, and must do much to bring them into habits of civ- 
ilization. The days of the wild Indians of this country are 

16 



242 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

nearly over. In the future we shall have working and 
thinking Indians to take their j)lace. 

Increase of Wealth. — In the years that have passed since 
the close of the war the United States has grown greatly in 
riches. In 1880, Great Britain was the only country in the 
world that had more wealth. In 1890 the United States 
was probahly the richest country on the earth. Part of 
this wealth comes from the product of the American mines. 
The mines of the West yield a large value in gold and silver 
yearly; hut the iron, coal, copper, and other mines of the 
country are yet more valuable. And of still greater value is 
the soil, which yields more food than all the people of the 
United States can consume. 

Manufacturing- Industries. — Another great source of this 
wealth is the manufacturing industry of the United States, 
which produces thousands of millions of dollars' worth of 
goods yearly. In former times most of the articles used in 
this country were brought from Europe, but now many 
things are sent from here to Europe. American watches are 
the cheapest in the world, and no better are made anywhere. 
Many other things came from abroad, such as glassware, line 
furniture, soap, writing-paper, perfumery, carriages, and 
numerous other articles ; now we make more than we can 
use of these goods, and send many of them to other coun- 
tries. At one time all our tine knives, tools, and other goods 
of steel came from Sheffield, in England, and only coarse 
cutlery and tools were made here ; now American cutlery 
is sent to Sheffield and sold there. Years ago nearly all our 
carpets were brought from England ; but now the city of 
Philadelphia is the greatest carpet manufacturing city in 
the world. The same could be said of many other things. 
The United States sends to other countries to-day great 
quantities of manufactured goods, meat, and grain. We 



THE UNITED STATES. 243 

produce so much more than we can use that there is plenty 
left to sell to other countries. 

Invention of Machinery. — This great progress is due to 
the remarkable inventive power of the Americans. In ma- 
chinery for saving labor the United States is in advance 
of all other nations. Our inventors are so active that more 
than twenty-two thousand patents have been granted in a 
single year. Machines are made to do all kinds of work. 
Farmers do not have to work half so hard as they once did, 
and yet produce much more. The same may be said of 
every kind of manufacturing business. A hundred years 
ago the printing-press could only print two hundred and 
fifty sheets on one side in an hour; now forty thousand 
sheets can be printed on both sides in the same time. 

Progress of the South. — This progress is not confined to 
the North and West. The South is making great progress 
also. At the end of the war the Southern States were in a 
condition of ruin. Only their soil was left., and much of 
that had been so overworked that it was of no value. The 
slaves whom they had depended on to do their work were 
free. It looked as if it would take a century to recover 
from the ruin of the war. 

Yet the South to-day is richer and better off than it 
ever was. Free labor has proved more profitable than 
slave labor, and the crops of cotton and other produce are 
greater than ever. And the white population has gone 
to work nobly and cheerfully. The country is being de- 
veloped everywhere. Iron and coal mines are now being 
opened and worked, and workshops and factories are being 
built in many parts of the Soutli. Great exhibitions have 
been held at New Orleans, Atlanta, and Nashville, in which 
the progress of the South was shown. In the time to 
come the whole country will be one great hive of indus- 



244 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

try, and all parts will work together for the good of the 
whole. 

The Pacific States. — While there has been great prog- 
ress in the older parts of the country, the same may be 
said of the far West. There are no more productive States 
in the Union than those that border on the Pacific. For 
many miles inland from the ocean the land is very fertile 
and the crops are large, fruits being especially fine and 
plentiful. The orchards of Oregon and the vineyards and 
orange groves of California are nowhere surpassed. 

In the mountain regions of the West little rain falls and 
much of the country is a desert. But the water of the 
rivers and mountain streams is carried to the fields in long 
canals, from wdiich many small ditches convey it to the 
soil. This system is called irrigation, and large crops are 
raised by its aid. Great herds of cattle and sheep are also 
kept, and the mountains are covered ^itli forests of valuable 
timber, many of the trees being of immense size. 

Mining-. — But the great value of the Sierra Nevada and 
Rocky Mountains lies in their mines of the precious metals 
and of other valuable minerals. Gold, silver, lead, and 
copper are abundant, and rich deposits of many other min- 
erals are found. No part of the world has yielded more 
gold than California; Nevada and Colorado have proved 
very rich in silver; and others of the Western States have 
mines of gold, silver, copper, iron, lead, etc. 

Gold in Alaska. — For a number of years men have been 
seeking gold in Alaska, and in the summer of 1807 the 
news came that rich deposits of placer gold had been found 
on the Klondike, a branch of the great Yukon River. The 
region is cold and barren, and very difficult to reach; but 
thousands of miners went there, though there was danger 
thait they might starve from lack of food. Gold is likely 



THE UNITED STATES. 



245 



to be found on other streams of that region, and AL^ska 
will soon be the abiding-place of a gold-seeking multitude. 
In placer deposits the gold is found in the sands and gravels 
along the rivers, having been washed from the quartz veins 
in the mountains. To obtain it the earth is dug up and 
the sand and dirt washed from the gold by running water. 




COLD-MINKRS IN ALASKA. 



In Alaska the ground is frozen, and must be softened by 
tires before the gold-bearing soil can be obtained. This is 
done in the winter, and the earth is washed when the 
streams begin to flow in the summer. 

Petroleum and Natural Gas. — Another great source of 
wealth in this country is its vast supply of petroleum, or 
rock oil, which is found far below the surface. It is 
reached by boring deep wells, from which the oil flows or 



246 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

is pumped up. Petroleum is abundant in Pennsylvania 
and some other States, and is much used for burning and 
other purposes. Many of these wells yield also large quan- 
tities of what is known as natural gas, which burns with a 
bright flame and great heat. It is used for lighting and 
warming houses and in factories, and is conveyed from the 
wells in pipes to distant towns and cities, where it takes 
the place of coal in manufactories. 

Fish Culture. — The lakes and rivers of the United States, 
and the waters of the neighboring oceans, are rich in fishes, 
many of which are very valuable as food. But fishing has 
been so active and reckless that the supply is growing small, 
and there has long been danger that this great source of 
wealth would fail. This is prevented by what is known as 
fish culture. Every year many millions of fish-eggs are 
hatched out by artificial means and the young fish cared 
for until they are able to care for themselves. They are 
then placed in the open waters, and in a few years are large 
enough to catch. In this way the supply of fish is likely 
to be kept up, no matter how many may be caught in the 
fishermen's nets. 

Education. — If we look for the causes of this great prog- 
ress we shall find that one of the most important is educa- 
tion. The people of the United States are among the best 
educated on the face of the earth. In 1890 there were a great 
multitude of public scliools in the country, with over twelve 
million pupils. There are now many more than this. Be- 
sides these, there are more than four hundred colleges and 
a very considerable number of private schools. Our people 
spend more for the support of their public schools than the 
people of all Europe. In this way we are being taught to 
use our brains as well as our hands, and it is this brain- 
work which keeps the country so active in every direction. 



THE UNITED STATES. 247 

School-life is not ended when the school-term of the boy 
or girl is over. We go to school all our lives, and our edu- 
cation is all the time increasing. Newspapers and books 
constantly add to the learning gained in the school-house. 
There are now about twenty thousand newspapers and 
magazines in the United States, and there are enough 
newspapers printed every week to give one to every man, 
woman, and child in the country. Books are also printed 
in such numbers that every one can have all the reading he 
needs for very little money. A century ago many of the 
people could not get one new book a year. Many now get 
a new one almost every day. 

Every city has its libraries, its art galleries, and other 
means for the higher education of the people. Education 
is spreading in new directions. Instruction in industry is one 
of the new ideas of the times. Children are being taught 
to draw and to use tools, and are thus being made fit for 
the business of life ; for in life the body has to be used as 
well as the brain, and to make the best kind of a man 
the body and the brain of the child need to be educated 
together. 

Benevolence. — Of one more thing we may speak. The 
people of the United States are developing in charity as 
well as in other directions. Everywhere we see hospitals, 
asylums, and homes which have been started by the money 
of rich people. Whenever a great fire takes place, or a 
great storm destroys farms and villages, the people give 
money freely to help the destitute. This is the best kind 
of progress. It is progress in that love for all mankind 
which was taught by Christ. Let us hope that it will grow 
and spread in this country, for in that way the people of 
America may be made the noblest and the happiest of all 
the people of the earth. 



248 ^N ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



PART VIII.-QUESTIONS FOR EXAMINATION. 

I. How many soldiers were in the Union army during the war? How 
many were there at the end of the war? About how many Confederate 
soldiers were there ? How many were lost on each side ? What was the 
United States debt at the end of the war? Where was most damage done? 
What was the condition of the South after the war? What of the North ? 
What good was accomplished by the war? What is now thought of slavery 
in the South ? What did the people think of Abraham Lincoln ? How 
were they alfected by his assassination ? Who succeeded him as President ? 
What was to be done? What is done by the Thirteenth Amendment to the 
Constitution ? What by the Fourteenth ? How did President Johnson deal 
with the laws passed by Congress on the subject of reconstruction? What 
did Congress do in consequence ? What is meant by impeachment of a 
President ? Before what court was he tried ? What was the result of the 
trial? What is done by the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution? 
How did the seceded States act towards these amendments ? When did the 
last of them come back into the Union ? How were the Western Indians 
treated ? What happened in consequence ? AVhat has been done with these 
Indians? What new territory was added to the United States in 18(37? 
From whom was it purchased ? What makes it valuable ? What President 
was elected in 1868 ? How long did he remain President ? What great lire 
took place in 1871 ? How much of the city was burned ? What was the 
money loss? Where did great forest fires take place in the same year? In 
what other city did a great fire break out the next year ? What was the loss? 
How did the people act after the fires? What is meant by the " Alabama 
claims"? Why did America blame England? How was it decided to 
settle the dispute? What sum was England required to pay ? How are dis- 
putes between nations usually settled ? What was the cause of the business 
panic of 1873? What effect did it have upon the country ? How long did 
it take for business to recover from the panic ? Where was a great exhibi- 
tion held in 1876 ? Why ? What did this exhibition teach our people? In 
what bus great progress taken place since that time ? Who were the candi- 
dates in the Presidential election of 1876? How was the dispute about the 
election settled ? Who became Brcsident? When did gold come into use 
again as money ? How long had the business of the country been done with 
paper money only ? In what years was yellow fever an epidemic in the 
South? How did the North act? What effect had this on the feeling of the 
two sections ? Who was elected President in 1880? What did he do about 
appointing men to ofiice? What sort of men did this make angry? What 



THE UNITED STATES. 249 

happened to the President ? How long did he live afterwards? What was 
the feeling of the people? What is said about the telegraphic service? 
Who became President after Garfield's death? Who became President in 
1885? By what party was he elected? Of what party were all the Presi- 
dents between 1861 and 1885 ? What terrible event happened in the South 
in 1886 ? What was the eflect of the earthquake at Charleston ? What 
was the loss ? What have the working people done of i-ecent years ? When 
did the eight-hour strike take place in Chicago? What class of people took 
advantage of it? What was done by the anarchists when the police tried to 
break up their meeting ? What effect did the bomb have ? How wore the an- 
archists punished ? Describe the disaster at Johnstown, Pennsylvania. What 
was the purpose t)f the Pan-American Congress ? What was the McKinley 
taritf ? What is meant by reciprocity in trade ? What was the efi^'ect of the 
reciprocity bill in America? What was the purpose of the silver bills? 
What took place in business affairs in 1898 ? What new States were admitted 
in 1889? What in 1890? What Territories remained ? What victory did the 
Democratic party gain in 1890 ? What was the population of the United States 
in 1890? What is meant by the Copyright law? What changes were made 
in the pension list? What in the immigration laws? What trouble arose 
about the seal fisheries? Who were nominated for the Presidency in 1892? 
Who was elected President ? What is meant by the American Quadricenten- 
nial ? What celebrations took place ? Describe the Columbian World's Fair. 
II. How many soldiers were in arms at the end of the war? What would 
such an army have done in old times ? What did the American army do ? 
What was left of this great army after a year or two ? How many soldiers 
are in our present army ? For what are they used ? What great event took 
l)lace in 18G6 ? What advantage do we get from the Atlantic cables? How 
many miles of telegraph line are there in the United States? How does this 
compare with the telegraphs of other countries? What is the purpose of the 
signal service ? To whom is it of great use ? In what ways is electricity 
used ? What does the telephone enable men to do ? What great feat in rail- 
road building was finished in 18G9 ? Describe the event of driving the last 
spike. What other Pacific railroads are there ? How long does it take to go 
from New York to San Francisco ? How long to Europe ? How many miles 
of railroad are there in the United States at present? How does this compare 
with Europe and the world ? How has it aff"ected travel? In what other 
ways are the railroads useful ? How many post-offices were there in the 
United States in 1790 ? How many are there now ? How much faster are 
letters carried now than then ? What was the rate of postage then ? What 
is it now ? What was the population then ? What is it now ? How many 
persons come here every year from Europe ? What becomes of these people ? 



250 ^N ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES. 

"What people are prevented by law from coming to this country ? Why ? 
Is there any more fighting with the Indians? How are they cared for? 
What is proposed to be done with them ? What means are taken to civilize 
them ? In what way are the Indian schools useful ? Which was the richest 
country in the world in 1880 ? Which is likely to be in 1890? What are 
important sources of the wealth of America ? What other great source of 
wealth is there ? What kinds of goods did we formerly get from abroad ? 
What do we now send abroad ? To what do we owe our great progress in 
manufacturing? How many patents have been granted in a singjle year? 
Do people have to work as hard as they did ? What advance has been made 
in the art of printing ? What was the condition of the South at the end of 
the war? What is its condition to-day ? In what way is the country being 
developed? Where have great exhibitions been held? What will be the 
condition of the whole country in the time to come ? What is one important 
cause of this great progress ? How many schools were there in this country 
in 1880 ? How many pupils ? How many colleges ? How many newspapers 
and magazines are there at the present time ? How many newspapers are 
printed each week ? How have the number of books increased in this country ? 
What other means of education have the cities? What new idea is there in 
education? What is said about benevolence in America? In what ways 
do people give money freely ? What eflect is progress in this direction 
likely to have upon the American people? 



HISTORY OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



I.— THE PEKIOD OF SETTLEMENT. 

The Natives. — When white men first came to the region 
now known as Pennsylvania, they found it occupied by 
several tribes of Indians. In the eastern part was a tribe 
whom they named Delawares, from the name given to the 
river on which they dwelt. Their native title was Lenni 
Lenape. Farther west, in the mountain country along the 
Susquehanna River, dwelt the Monseys or Wolf tribes, and 
in the north were a number of tribes known to the natives 
as Mingoes, but called by the French the Iroquois and by 
the English the Five Nations. The Delawares were not 
warlike. They had been conquered by the Mingoes, and 
could not go to war or make treaties without their consent. 
Thus the first whites had a peaceful people to deal with. 

The Dutch Arrive. — In 1609, Captain Henry Hudson, 
sent by the Dutch to this country, sailed a short distance 
into Delaware Bay. From there he sailed to the Hudson 
River. The Dutch called this the North River and the 
Delaware the South River, and claimed as their own all 
the territory between them. In 1623, Captain Mey, who 
gave his name to Cape May (though time has made a 
change in the spelling), sailed up the South River and 
built a fort a few miles below the site of Philadelphia, 
near the present city of Gloucester, New Jersey. This 

251 



252 ^-^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

fort was soon abandoned, but in 1631 a Dutch settlement 
was made near the present site of Lewes, Delaware. It 
did not lust long, its people quarrelling with the Indians, 
who killed tliem all within a year. 

The Swedes. — The Dutch had at this time a thriving 
settlement at the mouth of the Hudson, and the King of 
Sweden thought that he would also like to possess a colony 
in America, so he sent out in 1638 two ship-loads of colo- 
nists. These crossed the ocean to the South River, up which 
they sailed, the Swedes being so pleased with the appear- 
ance of the surrounding country that they called it Para- 
dise. Some of them settled near Brandywine Creek, others 
near Chestei* and Darby Creeks, and in 1642 Governor 
Printz built liimself a mansion on Tinicum Island and 
made this the seat of government. A town was after- 
wards laid out on Chester Creek and named Upland (now 
Chester). 

Other Swedes soon came and settled at various points 
along the river, some of them as far north as the site of 
Philadelphia. For defence against the Indians they built 
log forts or block-houses. But they were friendly and 
honest in their dealings with the natives and kept on good 
terms with them, so that there were no quarrels and the 
forts were not needed. 

The Dutch Conquest. — The Dutch of New Amsterdam 
were not pleased with the coming of the Swedes. They 
claimed all the land along the Delaware as their own, and 
it was not long before they made war on the new settlers. 
In 1655 a Dutch fleet filled with soldiers sailed up the river, 
and all the Swedish forts were taken. But the private 
rights of the Swedes were not interfered wnth, and they 
remained on the land, though it was governed by the Dutch. 
A Swedish ship filled with colonists sailed up the river the 



THE UNITED STATES. 253 

next year. The Dutch tried to stop it, but the Indians in- 
terfered in behalf of their friends the Swedes, and the ship 
was permitted to proceed. In it were some of the first 
settlers of Philadelphia, 

The English Come. — Nine years after the Dutch came 
the English. They took possession of I^ew Amsterdam 
and named it New York, and in 1664 they sailed up the 
Delaware and took the Dutch fort at Ne\v Castle. That 
was the last of Dutch rule in North America, except in the 
years 1673 and 1674, when, during a war between England 
and Holland, the latter country took and held for a time 
its old possessions. But the Dutch and the Swedes lived 
happily enough under English rule. 

Naming the River. — The South River, as the Dutch 
called it, was named by the Swedes the New Swedeland 
River. The English, on gaining possession, called the river 
and bay by the name of Delaware, after Lord De la War, 
governor of Virginia, who had visited the bay many years 
before. 

The Friends. — The religious sect known as the Friends, 
or Quakers, who had been cruelly treated in England, began 
about this time to look upon America as a place of refuge, 
and a number of them came over and settled in Western 
New Jersey, where William Penn and others had bought 
lands. George Fox, the founder of the society, visited 
them here in 1673. In 1675 some of them crossed the 
Delaware and settled near Upland. A few years afterwards, 
when they heard that William Penn had been granted the 
land west of the river, others crossed and sought homes 
and farms in the country near Upland. 

William Penn. — The sect of the Friends was at first made 
up of the poor people of England, but some people of higher 
station soon joined it, among them William Penn, son of 

22 



254 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Admiral Penn of the British navy. The young convert 
was a friend of the king, Charles II., and of his hrother, the 
Duke of York, and had great influence at court, which he 
used for the benefit of the suftering Friends. His father 
had left him a large claim against the English government, 
and, as the king could not pay him the money, he asked for 
a grant of that tract of land in America which lay west of 
the Delaware River and between the provinces of Mary- 
land and New York. 

Penn's Grant. — This the king was very willing to give 
him. The patent for the grant was carefully written on 
parchment, and is still preserved, being kept in the exec- 
utive chamber at Ilarrisburg. The land granted to Penn 
was to extend through five degrees of longitude, to be 
bounded on the east by the Delaware Eiver, on the north 
b}' the forty-third degree of north latitude, and on the 
south by the arc of a circle beginning on the river twelve 
miles north of New Castle and drawn westward to the be- 
ginning of the fortieth degree of north latitude, which it 
was to follow to the western boundary. 

The Southern Boundary. — The terms of this grant after- 
wards led to a dispute with Lord Baltimore. The curved 
line to be drawn twelve miles from New Castle would lie 
a number of miles south of the fortieth parallel of latitude, 
which runs near Philadelphia. Penn claimed that the for- 
tieth degree began as soon as the thirty-ninth was passed. 
Lord Baltimore claimed that his grant extended to the for- 
tieth i)arallel. The one claim would have placed Philadel- 
phia on the southern border of the State, the other would 
have placed the border nearly seventy miles south of that 
city, as far south as Baltimore. The dispute Avas not settled 
till 1761, when the English courts fixed the line midway 
between the thirty-ninth and fortieth parallels. Two Eng- 



THE UNITED STATES 255 

lish engineers, Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon, then 
surveyed and marked out the boundary line. It is still 
known as Mason and Dixon's line. 

The Coming- of the People. — The grant was signed by 
Charles II. on March 4, 1681, the new province being 
named by him Pennsylvania, or Penn's Woodland. As 
soon as news of wdiat had been done reached America, a 
number of Friends crossed from New Jersey to the new 
province, being joyful to learn that they had a home pre- 
pared for them under a wise and just member of their own 
society. 

William Markham, Penn's cousin, was made deputy- 
governor, and reached Pennsylvania in June, 1681. A 
court was held at Upland in September, one of whose first 
acts was to forbid the sale of intoxicating liquors to the 
Indians. It was known that such sale was likely to cause 
trouble and perhaps lead to bloodshed. Three ships loaded 
with emigrants left England that year, in one of which came 
the commissioners who were to examine the land and the 
river and choose a suitable spot for the city which Penn 
proposed to found. He gave orders that the houses of this 
city should be built in the middle of large plots, " that there 
may be ground on each side for gardens, or orchards, or 
fields, that it maybe a green country town which will never 
be burnt and always wholesome." 

The Site of Philadelphia. — He also sent messages of good 
wnll to the Indians, which they received with joy, for they 
wished to dwell in peace with the whites. In 1682 there 
were about two thousand white people in the province, 
mostly Swedes. At Wicaco, on the site of Philadelphia, 
was a Swedish church, which had been built as a block- 
house in 1669. There was a Friends' meeting-house at 
Shackamaxon (afterwards Kensington). These buildings 



256 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



were on the ground which the commissioners selected for 
the site of the new city, its location, between the Delaware 
and Schuylkill Rivers, seeming very suitable for the pur- 
pose. For this city Penn had selected the name of Phila- 
delphia, or " Brotherly love," hoping to make it a home of 
kindly feeling, honor, and justice. 

Penn's Arrival.— On the 30th of August, 1682, William 
Penn left England in the ship Welcome, and reached the 
town of !N"ew Castle on October 27. About one hundred 
emigrants sailed with him, but thirty of them died of small- 
pox on the voyage. He reached Upland probably on the 
28th. It is said that on seeing it he turned to his friend 




■iJ/ 




LANDING OF WILLIAM PENN AT CHESTER. 



Pearson and asked, " What wilt thou that I should call 
this place?" Pearson answered, "Chester," the name of 
the English town from which he had come. Some writers 
say that this story is doubtful, but it is certain that Penn 
named the i)lace Chester, its good old name of Upland 
being lost. 

The new owner of the province at once called a court, to 
meet at New Castle on November 2. Here the claims of 



THE UNITED STATES. 257 

the people to their lands were made good, and they were 
told that they should be governed by laws of their own 
making. It is proper to state that the territory now known 
as the State of Delaware, claimed by the Duke of York, the 
brother of the king, liad been sold by him to Penn, who 
tluis owned all the land on the west side of the Delaware 
Eiver. It is not known on what day Penn went to Philadel- 
phia. There is a tradition that he went there from Chester 
in an open boat with some friends. We know that he was 
there on the 8th of November, 1682. 

Treaty with the Indians. — We are told that the proprie- 
tor made himself very friendly to the Indians, walking and 
sitting with them and eating some of their roasted acorns 
and hominy. When they began to show how they could 
hop and jump, he won their respect by showing them that 
he could do better than the best of them at this exercise. 
Soon after he made a treaty with them, to which the dif- 
ferent tribes sent delegates, and in which it was agreed 
that " The Indians and the English will live in love as long 
as the sun and moon shall endure." Tradition says that this 
treaty was made under a great elm-tree at Shackamaxon, 
which was blown down by a storm in 1810. There is now 
a monument on the spot, with a small park around it. 

Laying- Out the City and Province. — The new city was 
laid out with streets crossing at right angles, those running 
north and south being named Front, Second, etc., those 
running westward from the Delaware being named Chest- 
nut, Walnut, Spruce, etc., after the forest-trees. Midway 
between the rivers ran a wide street named Broad Street, 
and midway in the other direction a wide street named 
High (now Market) Street, Where these two streets 
crossed a public square was laid out. It was known as 
Centre, and afterwards as Penn, Square, but is now occu- 

r 22* 



258 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

pied by the Philadelphia City Hall. The province was 
divided into three counties, Philadelphia, Chester, and 
Bucks. The territory of Delaware was also laid out in 
three counties. Several Swedes had farms on the site of 
Philadelphia, but Penn paid them for their lands, as he also 
paid the Indians for all lands taken from them, No land 
w^as occupied by him without the consent of the owners. 

The First Assembly. — The new proprietor did not pro- 
pose to make laws for the people. He had promised them 
a free government by their own representatives, and at once 
ordered an election to take place. The delegates elected 
met at Chester on December 4, 1682, and formed there the 
first legislative assembly of Pennsylvania. This assembly 
was in session three days, in which it passed " The Great 
Law," a system of government which Penn had carefully 
prepared. This gave the people the right to make their 
own laws, all who believed in the Deity the right to wor- 
ship as they pleased, and all tax-payers the right to vote 
and hold office, and forbade swearing, blasphemy, gam- 
bling, play-acting, and drunkenness under penalty of fine 
and imprisonment. Prisons were declared to be work- 
houses, where felons were to be reformed and taught some 
useful trade. This was a great improvement on the Eng- 
lish prisons of that time. 

Courts were also provided for, and a council which was 
to assist the governor in the discharge of his duties. The 
council had no share in the making of the laws, its powers 
being confined to putting them in force. Pennsylvania 
thus had a single law-making body, while each of the other 
colonies had two. At the first session of the council, in 
March, 1683, it tried a woman for witchcraft, the only case 
of this kind ever tried in Pennsylvania. The accused was 
declared not guilty. 



THE UNITED STATES. 259 

New Settlers Arrive. — In August, 1683, Penn wrote 
home that there were ahout eighty houses already in the 
city. In October a colony of Germans arrived and founded 
the village of Germantown, six miles from Philadelphia. 
Some of these lived for a time in caves which the first 
settlers had dug for homes along the river bank. A Welsh 
settlement had been made in 1682. The Welsh were not 
liked by the English, and were not welcomed in Philadel- 
phia. They went back into the wilderness and founded 
the townships of Merion and Haverford, now parts of Mont- 
gomery and Chester Counties. Many Friends came from 
England and settled at Philadelphia, Chester, Darby, and 
along the Delaware River as far up as the falls. 

When Penn set out for home, which was on the 12th of 
August, 1684, the province is said to have had about seven 
thousand inhabitants, of whom twenty-five hundred were 
in Philadelphia, which was then a city of over three hun- 
dred houses and with many ships sailing to foreign ports. 
The people were made up of Swedes, Finns, Dutch, Eng- 
lish, Welsh, and Germans, to whom were soon added 
Scotch, Irish, and French. The last named were Hugue- 
nots, or Protestants, who had fled from religious persecution 
at home, as had also many of the Germans. 

A large body of Swiss Mennonites came in 1709, also on 
account of religious persecution. They settled at first in 
Germantown, but in 1712 formed a settlement at Pequea, 
Lancaster County. This was a beautiful and fertile valley, 
and many Germans afterwards came there. Before 1727 
there were nearly fifty thousand settlers in Pennsylvania, 
very many of whom were Germans, and the settlements 
extended as far west as the Susquehanna and its tribu- 
taries. 



260 ^^ ELEMENTARV HISTORY OF 

II.— THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PROVINCE. 

Disputes in the Assembly. — After Penn went home dis- 
putes arose between the assembly and the council. The 
members from Delaware (then known as the Territories) 
also quarrelled with those from the province, and in 1691 
they withdrew and the people of the Territories elected an 
assembly of their own. Penn gave them a separate gov- 
ernor, so that there were now two assemblies and two 
deput3'-govcrnors. They were united again by Governor 
Fletcher in 1693, but finally separated in 1702, Delaware 
then becoming an independent province, though both re- 
mained under one governor until 1776. 

Penn arrested. — Meanwhile, there were troublous times 
in England. King Charles died in 1685, and the Duke of 
York became king as James 11. , but he proved so great a 
tyrant that the people rebelled and drove him from the king- 
dom in 1688, and William, Prince of Orange, became king. 
William Penn had been a friend of King James, and was 
arrested for treason in 1692 and his province taken from 
him and placed under Governor Fletcher of New York. 
This governor acted like a tyrant, and the people were very 
glad when they heard in 1694 that Penn had been cleared 
of the charge of treason and his province restored to him. 

The Proprietor returns. — It was not until 1699 that the 
proprietor was able to return to his province. He had been 
detained by difficulties and misfortunes in England, and 
came back to find the people in trouble and dismay. That 
dreadful scourge, the yellow fever, had broken out, and 
many of them had died. But they w^ere cheered by the 
coming among them of their true friend, and the assembly 
was at once called to meet in Philadelphia and revise the 
laws of which complaints had been made. 



THE UNITED STATES. 261 

Slave-holding, — One question to be dealt with was that 
of slavery. Penn had found slaves in the province in 1682, 
and made no objection to their presence. The Germans of 
Germantown protested against slave-holding in 1688, but it 
was not until 1696 that the Friends took any steps to check 
it. A bill for the abolition of slaver}' was brought before 
the assembly in 1699, but the only action taken was to give 
the slaves the benefit of a legal trial when charged with 
wrong-doing. An eftbrt was made to stop the sale of liquor 
to the Indians, but the frontiersmen could not be controlled 
and the sale went on, 

Penn's Return to England, — Penn now proposed to make 
Pennsylvania his future home, a mansion having been built 
for him at Pennsbury on the Delaware, about twenty-five 
miles above Philadelphia, He moved thither in 1700. But 
news came from England that there was a bill before Par- 
liament for the purpose of doing away with proprietary 
governments in America and placing all the provinces 
under the king. He felt it necessary to go back to defend 
his rights, and did so in 1701, after first granting the people 
a new constitution in which they gained an increase of 
power. The new charter made Philadelphia a corporate 
city, Edward Shippen being chosen as its first mayor. 

War Troubles ; Governor Evans's Scheme. — The next 
event of importance in the history of Pennsylvania arose 
from what is known as Queen Anne's "War, in which the 
French and Indians of Canada made ttacks upon the 
English colonies. There were two parties now in the 
province, the Friends and some sects of the Germans, who 
were opposed to war, and those of other beliefs, Avho 
thought that money and men should be provided for de- 
fence against the enemy. 

The peace party was the strongest in the assembly and 



262 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

council, but the governor was opposed to it and raised a 
company of soldiers. Governor Hamilton died in 1703 
and was succeeded by John Evans, Avho also favored war, 
but who turned the people against him by playing a trick 
upon them. On the day of the annual fair in Philadelphia, 
when the streets were filled with people from the country, 
a messenger came in great haste from New Castle and said 
that Spanish ships were in the river and would soon attack 
the city. 

Governor Evans now mounted his horse and rode at 
full speed through the streets, sword in hand, calling on 
the people to arm for defence. His action threw the city 
into panic and confusion, the shipping was hurried away 
up the river, articles of value were hidden, and for some 
hours everybody was in dismay. Then word came that the 
report was false, and the people grew as angiy as they had 
been frightened. The governor and his friends for a time 
were in danger. The alarm did not disturb the Friends, 
who were gathered for worship in their meeting-house, and 
went on with their religious exercises as if nothing out of 
the usual course was taking place. The qviarrel with the 
governor continued until 1709, when William Penn felt it 
necessary to remove him and appoint another in his place. 

The Quarrel ended. — The war continued, and the new 
governor demanded means of defence. War-ships of the 
enemy had appeared at the mouth of Delaware Bay, but 
the Indians were friendly and the assembly could not be 
moved from the policy of peace and good will held by 
William Penn and the Friends. No soldiers were provided, 
but two thousand pounds were voted for the use of the 
queen, to be raised by a tax on the people. This act re- 
stored harmony, and for a time the disputes between the 
governor and the assembly ceased. 



THE UNITED STATES. 263 

Acts of the Law-Makers. — In 1712 the assembly passed 
an act seeking to put an end to the trade in slaves. Bills 
were also passed laying heavy duties on rum, whiskey, and 
other spirits, fixing the value of coin, and establishing 
courts of justice. All these acts were declared of no effect 
by the English government, much to the displeasure of the 
colonists, who felt that they were being deprived of their 
rights and privileges. 

Other difficulties soon arose. Queen Anne died in 1714, 
and a new king, George I., was crowned. At once an old 
law was revived which forbade Quakers to give evidence 
in criminal cases, to serve on juries, or to hold any office of 
profit. An attempt was made to apply this to Pennsylvania, 
where all the offices were filled by people of that sect. A 
strong protest was made by the assembly, and a contest 
began which was kept up for ten years. At length, in 1725, 
the law was withdrawn so far as regarded Pennsylvania, 
through an act passed by the assembly which was accepted 
by the king. 

A Friendly Governor. — The colonists were greatly pleased 
to have won this victory over their enemies. They were 
also much pleased with a new governor. Sir "William Keith, 
who came to Philadelphia in 1717 and showed himself 
the friend of the people. For almost the first time since 
William Penn had gone home, the assembly, council, and 
governor ceased to quarrel with one another. 

Death of Penn.— In 1718 William Penn died. The news 
of his death was received with deep sorrow in the province, 
and the Indians also showed grief at the loss of the " great 
and good 0)ias." Mrs. Penn acted as proprietor for her 
sons, all of whom were under age, while Governor Keith 
continued at the head of aftairs. Harmony prevailed in the 
government, the people devoted themselves to trade and to 



264 ^^ ELEMENTARY HlSTORT OF 

the improvement of their farms, and for years all \Yent 
happily on. 

Increase of Population. — The province of Pennsylvania 
had now become the most popular and prosperous of the 
American colonies, and new immigrants came in such 
numbers, mostly from Germany, that the Friends became 
alarmed. They feared that Pennsylvania would have so 
many " foreigners" that it would cease to be an English 
colony. Acts were passed to refuse these strangers the 
rights of citizens and to lay a special tax on them, and it 
was long before these unwise discriminations were removed. 

Benjamin Franklin. — In 1723, near the end of Governor 
Keith's administration, Benjamin Franklin came from Bos- 
ton to Philadelphia. He was then a boy of seventeen, but 
was in the future to become the ablest and most useful citi- 
zen of his new place of residence. 

A New County formed. — There were still only three 
counties in the province. The farmers beyond the Cones- 
toga and along the Susquehanna were in Chester County, 
and had to go to the court-house at Chester, nearly a hun- 
dred miles away, for jury and other duties. On this ac- 
count a new county was formed in 1729, which was named 
Lancaster. The town of Lancaster was laid out in 1730. 
The people in this section were largely Germans, though 
there were also English, Scotch, Irish, and Welsh. Nearly 
all had been persecuted at home for their religious faith, 
and were strongly in favor of freedom of conscience in their 
new homes. Some alarm was caused by the building of a 
Roman Catholic chapel in Philadelphia in 1733, but the 
Catholics were not disturbed in their religious worship. 

A Border War. — The dispute which had long existed 
concerning the boundary line between Pennsylvania and 
Maryland led in 1736 to acts of violence. The Germans 



THE UNITED STATES. 265 

who had taken up land beyond the Susquehanna at first 
believed that their farms were in Maryland, About this 
time they changed their opinion and declared themselves 
to be citizens of Pennsylvania. As a result the sheriff of 
Baltimore County marched with three hundred men to 
drive them out. But the sheriff of Lancaster County 
called out a strong force to resist this invasion, and the 
Marylanders thought it wise to retire. 

Shortly afterwards a lawless band crossed the borders 
from Maryland with the purpose of driving away the Ger- 
mans and seizing their lands. The sheriff of Lancaster 
met them with a force of citizens, and a sharp fight took 
place, one man being killed, and Thomas Cressap, the 
leader of the invaders, w'ounded and taken prisoner. 

The petty war was kept up for about a year, a number 
of Germans were seized and taken to Baltimore as hos- 
tages for Cressap, and citizens of both sides were w^ounded 
and captured in the conflicts that took place. Finally, in 

1737, an order came from the king that the governors 
should keep peace on the border until the boundary line 
had been fixed. 

The First Centennial. — The hundredth anniversary of 
the settlement of the Swedes on the Delaw^are came in 

1738. The colony of William Penn was then fifty-seven 
years old. It had more white inhabitants than any other 
province except Maryland, Virginia, and Massachusetts. 
Its capital city w^as next to Boston in population, and soon 
after became the largest in the colonies. The fertility of 
the soil, the mildness of the climate, the liberality of the 
laws, had brought settlers in large numbers from various 
countries. The just treatment of the Indians had kept 
them friendly, and there were no fears of savage massacres. 
Peace and prosperity prevailed, and for years all went well 

M 23 



266 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



with Pennsylvania and its people. The trade of Philadel- 
phia grew until its shipping amounted to six thousand tons, 
the produce of the fVirm, dairy, orchard, and forest being 
exported in large quantities. Thomas and John Penn, two 




OI D SW FDES ( 1 1 1 I I 1 1 



of William's sons, came to Pennsylvania in 1732, and were 
gladly welcomed by the people. John soon returned, but 
Thomas remained until 1741. 

The Walking Purchase. — In 1737 a great fraud upon the 
Indians was consummated, which made many of them ene- 
mies of the whites. An old deed provided for a purchase 
of land from the tribes to be measured by a line starting 
at Wrightstown — a few miles back from the Delaware above 
Trenton — and running northwest parallel with the river as 
far as a man could walk in a day and a half. From the end 



THE UNITED STATES. 267 

of the walk a line was to be drawn to the Delaware, and the 
purchase was to include all between these lines and the river. 

The Indians did not look for anything but an ordinary 
walk, but the governor liad the line surveyed in advance 
and the trees marked, so that the walkers could follow a 
straight line without losing time, and selected some of the 
best walkers in the province for the tusk. The Indians 
who came as watchers had to run to keep up with them, 
and near the end of the first day they withdrew in disgust, 
finding that they were being cheated. 

They understood that the Lehigh River would be the 
limit of the walk, but it extended thirty miles beyond that 
river, and the line drawn to the Delaware was not made 
direct, but was slanted upward for a long distance, so as to 
include the valuable Minisink country. It was this country 
that the governor was trying to secure. 

The Indians refused to leave the Minisink lands, and 
deputies from the Iroquois of ISTew York, to whom they 
were vassals, were called in to make them leave. They 
did so when ordered by their conquerors, but from this 
time on they hated the English, and when the war with the 
French broke out they revenged themselves on the settlers. 
Hatred had made them warriors again. This fraud was 
probably due to Thomas Penn, who was then in the coun- 
try, and who afterwards showed a grasping spirit in his 
dealings with the settlers.* 

* It is stated that this walking purchase was the completion of a purchase 
made hy William Markham in 1682, providing for a tract extending as far 
as a man could walk in three daj's, the line to begin at the mouth of the 
Neshaminy and extend northwestward. It is said that Penn, with some of 
his friends and a number of chiefs, began this walk, and continued it leisurely 
for a day and a half, proceeding for a distance of about thirty miles, when 
Penn stopped, saying that he had all the land he then wanted. At its com- 
pletion in 1737 the walk covered eighty-six miles. 



268 ^A' ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Threats of War. — The peaceful coudition of the province 
came to an end in 1739. War was declared between Eng- 
land and Spain, and the colonies were required to put 
themselves in a state of defence. Governor Thomas, who 
had been appointed in 1738, was ignorant of the kind of 
people he had to deal with, and ordered them to prepare 
for possible war. The Friends, who formed the majority 
of the assembly, refused, and a bitter dispute arose between 
the governor and the legislators. Finally the governor 
asked for money instead of soldiers, and this was at once 
granted. 

The Redemptioners. — Governor Thomas now organized 
seven companies of militia. Among his recruits were many 
of those known as " Redemptioners," — poor persons whose 
passage across the ocean had been paid for them, and who 
had agreed to work a certain number of years for their 
benefixctors. Those who enlisted did so under promise of 
being set free from these labor contracts. 

The assembly asked the governor to pay the farmers 
who had in this way lost their servants for the time still 
due. This he unjustly refused to do. The result was one 
of the most violent party contests ever known in Pennsyl- 
vania. 

Political Disputes. — Two parties arose, one taking tlie 
side of the governor, the other that of the assembly. The 
governor refused to approve the bills passed by the assem- 
bly, which, in return, refused to order the payment of his 
salary. Finally the quarrel became so severe that the as- 
sembly adjourned without having passed any of the neces- 
sary bills. Governor Thomas then, in revenge, removed 
from office all the judges, sheriffs, etc., who were on the side 
of his opponents. 

The Parties. — The term of service of the members of 



THE UNITED STATES. 269 

the assembly had expired, and a new election was ordered. 
A bitter contest was expected. The " Gentlemen's party," 
which supported the governor, had its chief strength in the 
city. The other, which was strongest in the country, was 
known as the " Quaker, or Country party." Both parties 
tried to win the favor of the Germans, who formed an 
important section of the farming population near the city. 

The Election Riot. — On the morning of October 1, 1739, 
members of both parties gathered about the polls, which 
were opened for the whole city and county of Philadelphia 
at the court-house on Market Street. The farming people 
were present in force, and were evidently on the side of the 
assembly. On the other side appeared a gang of sailors 
from the ships in the harbor, who had been engaged by the 
governor's party to drive their opponents from the polls. 

A disgraceful riot now took place. The sailors marched 
through the streets and attacked the country-people with 
clubs, knocking down all who did not run away. Even 
the magistrates who tried to check the riot were attacked. 
This done, the sailors went avray, but they came back as 
soon as the polls were opened, stationed themselves on the 
stairs leading to the ballot-box, and drove away all of the 
other party who came to vote. 

This did not last \ouo-, Thouo-h the Friends would not 
fight, the German farmers soon got tired of being knocked 
down, seized what weapons they could find, and made a 
fierce attack upon the sailors, whom they drove from the 
stairs. Fift}' of them were captured and put in jail. The 
others fled to their ships, and took care not to show them- 
selves in the streets again that day. 

End of the Quarrel. — Thus ended the first election riot 
in Pennsylvania. At the polls the Country party won, and 
the members of the old assembly were re-elected. Gover- 

23* 



270 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

nor Thomas, finding himself defeated, offered a compro- 
mise, which was accepted. The masters were paid for the 
loss of their servants, and the assembly voted a donation of 
about six thousand pounds towards the expenses of the war. 

The Militia called Out. — In 1744 a new war broke out, 
this time with the Frencli. Benjamin Franklin wrote and 
published a pamphlet called " Plain Truth," in which he 
showed the need of union and discipline. The governor 
commanded all able-bodied men to provide arms and train 
as militia, and in a short time ten thousand men were or- 
ganized and armed. Franklin was chosen as colonel of 
the Philadelphia regiment, but declined the honor, as he 
thought that he would be of more use as a private citizen. 

Other Measures for Defence. — In order to provide funds 
to build a battery below the city Franklin devised a lot- 
tery, for which he obtained contributions from many of the 
Friends, who, while not willing to fight, did not object to 
measures of self-defence. The Indians on the border had 
been roused to anger by the acts of traders, who made them 
drunk and then cheated them out of the true value of their 
furs. They also remembered how they had been wronged 
in the walking purchase, and showed signs of hostility, 
but they were quieted by the eflforts of the governors of 
Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia, who gave them valu- 
able presents and promised them protection. 

The king had determined on an invasion of Canada, and 
the colonies were called upon for aid. The Pennsylvania 
assembly voted five thousand pounds, with which two com- 
panies were organized and sent to Albany, Avhere they were 
kept guarding the frontier for a year and a half. Peace was 
signed in 1748. 

New Counties. — Up to 1740 there were but four coun- 
ties in Pennsylvania, Lancaster County including all the 



THE UNITED STATES. 271 

western part of the province. But there was now a consid- 
erable popuUition west of the Susquehanna, made up of 
English, Germans, and Scotch-Irish people, and in 1749 a 
new county, named York, was formed. In 1750 Cumber- 
laud County was laid out, and from that time on new coun- 
ties were added with some frequency as the population 
increased. 

Captain Jack. — In Cumberland County dwelt a noted 
character called Captain Jack, the " wild hunter of the 
Juniata." His family had been murdered by Indians, after 
which he lived in a cave and devoted himself to revenge 
upon the savages. In time he formed a band of hunters, 
who spent their time in protecting the frontier. He offered 
the services of his band to General Braddock, saying that 
they were " regardless of heat and cold. They require no 
shelter for the night ; they ask no pay." 

New Settlements. — The town of Easton was laid out 
about 1738, York in 1741, Eeading in 1748, and Carlisle 
about 1750. The Christian Indian settlements of Nazareth 
and Bethlehem were established about 1740, under the care 
of Moravian missionaries. Settlements were extending 
widely over the west and north, following the river valleys, 
in which the pioneers often took possession of Indian lands 
which had not yet been purchased. This, added to the 
other acts of deceit we have named, went far to break the 
good relations which had so far existed with the natives. 

Indian Councils. — Councils with the Indians were often 
held, in which their favor was obtained by valuable presents. 
Easton became a common place for these councils after 
1754, there being sometimes present from two hundred to 
live hundred chiefs and many of the leading men of the 
province. Frequent complaints were made by the natives, in 
order that they might have new councils and new presents, 



272 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

and this in time became so expensive that the people asked 
the proprietors to share part of the cost. The Penns refused 
and a strong party grew up against them, Benjamin Frank- 
lin being one of their opponents. It is well to state at this 
point that the sons of William Penn were not Friends like 
their father, but had joined the Church of England. 

III._WAR WITH THE FEENCH AND INDIANS. 

In 1754 war broke out between the French and English 
colonists in America. I'he general events of that war in 
Pennsylvania are described on pages 102 to 107 of the pre- 
ceding " History of the United States." Here we need to 
speak only of some particular events. 

Franklin's Services. — Benjamin Franklin took an active 
part in the war. In 1754 he drew up a plan for a union of 
the colonics. This was offered to a convention at Albany, 
but was not accepted by the country or tlie king. When 
General Braddock came to America with his troops there 
was much surprise that he did not land at Philadelphia. 
In Virginia he was able to obtain only twenty-five wagons, 
but Franklin told him that Pennsylvania Avould supply hira 
with all he needed, and in less than two weeks he had 
ready for him one hundred and fifty wagons and two hun- 
dred and fifty horses. In paying for these he gave two 
hundred pounds of his own money, and gave his bond to 
pay the full value of any horses that might be lost. The 
farmers did not care to trust the British general, but were 
quite ready to trust Franklin. 

The Indian Raids. — The defeat of Braddock that followed 
was a serious event for the frontier settlers. No sooner had 
the army retreated than the savage allies of the French 
attacked the farmers in the border settlements. Many of 
them were killed, others taken prisoners, their cattle and 



THE UNITED STATES. 273 

grain taken away or destroyed, their dwellings burned. 
Several thriving settlements were ruined, and in some places 
the whole country was laid waste. 

Political Quarrels. — This terrible state of affairs was 
partly due to a quarrel between the governor and the 
assembly. The governor would not sign the bill to provide 
money for the defence of the colonies, because it laid a 
share of the tax on the land of the proprietaries. For 
weeks they kept up the quarrel, while the savage foe was 
murdering the inhabitants. 

The people at length grew so indignant that a body of 
about four hundred Germans marched into Philadelphia 
and demanded that the assembly and the governor should 
act at once for the public relief. About the same time the 
proprietaries sent an order that five thousand pounds should 
be appropriated on their account to the use of the colony. 
This stopped the quarrel for the time, a liberal sum being 
voted by the assembly and a bill passed for the enlistment 
of soldiers. 

Franklin on the Frontier. — The governor asked Franklin 
to take charge of the protection of the frontier, and he at 
once went to work for that purpose. There were no expe- 
rienced, military men in Pennsylvania, but it was thought 
that Franklin could do everything well. ' Five hundred 
men were collected at Bethlehem, where the Moravians 
built a strong stockade and gathered a supply of arms. 
They even carried stones into their houses for the women 
to throw upon the heads of enemies. A military post was 
built farther up the Lehigh, and in the freezing January 
weather Franklin began to erect forts and block-houses 
along the Kittatinny Mountains. This chain of forts, be- 
ginning on the Delaware, was drawn during 1756 around 
the edge of the settled country towards the border of Mary- 



274 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

land. It Was not of mucli use in keeping back the enemy, 
who slipped between the forts and massacred people fifty 
miles within their line. 

Franklin was engaged about two months in this service, 
when he gave up his command to Colonel Clapham, a l^ew 
England officer, who knew the art of fighting Indians, and 
returned to Philadelphia, where he was elected colonel of a 
new regiment. 

The Friends seek Peace. — While the Indian massacres 
were going on, the leading Friends were seeking to restore 
peace with the natives. Some friendly Indians were sent 
to the hostile tribes to tell them that the brethren of Penn, 
their great friend, were anxious that they should live to- 
gether in peace and harmony as of old. This many of the 
Delawares and Shawanese* agreed to, and peace was estab- 
lished with them. 

The Hostile Indians. — But some of the chiefs of the Dela- 
wares were bitterly hostile, and would not join their tribe 
in its treaty of peace with the whites. They took part with 
the western Indians, who were under the influence of the 
French, and were stirred up by them to deeds of blood- 
shed. From their station at Kittanning, on the Alleghany 
River, these Indians destroyed settlements numbering many 
thousand inhal)itants, the people being killed, captured, or 
driven across the Susquehanna. 

The Assault on Kittanning. — Governor Morris deter- 
mined to destroy this Indian village, and sent against it a 
force of three hundred men, under Colonel Armstrong. 
They succeeded in approaching the village without being 
observed, and came within sight of it on the morning of 



* Shawanese Indians from Carolina had settled along the Susquehanna in 
1698. 



THE UNITED STATES. 275 

September 8, 1756. The warriors had been engaged in a 
war-dance, and many of them had hiin down to sleep in a 
cornfield near by. They were suddenly aroused by rifle- 
shots, by which part of them were killed and the rest put 
to flight. 

The village was next attacked, and here the natives de- 
fended themselves desperately, firing upon their assailants 
from the shelter of their wigwams. Colonel Armstrong 
ordered his men to set fire to these, and the village was 
soon in a sheet of flame, while the powder-barrels in the 
wigwams frequently exploded, throwing the bodies of their 
defenders into the air. Soon the village was in ashes and all 
that lived of its defenders were in full flight. This severe 
lesson put an end for a considerable time to the Indian 
raids, and many of the settlers returned to their farms. 

March of General Forbes. — The end of the war in Penn- 
sylvania came in 1758, General Forbes being sent against 
Fort Duquesne with an army of about eight thousand men. 
Colonel Bouquet led the advance, and sustained a fierce 
attack from the French and Indians. But they had not 
now a Braddock to deal with, and were driven back with 
great loss. 

General Forbes, however, marched so slowly, wasting 
time in cutting new roads through the mountain passes, 
tliat winter was close at hand before he came near the fort, 
and he would liave given up the expedition had not Wash- 
ington, who was with him, induced him to go on. Some 
scouts who had been captured had revealed the fact that the 
fort was poorly defended, and Washington pushed forward 
rapidly with his regiment, reaching it on November 25. 
He found that the French had set it on fire and fled down 
the Ohio. 

Building- of Fort Pitt. — Orders were given to rebuild the 



276 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

fort and make it stronger than before. It was named Fort 
Pitt, after the great English statesman who had managed 
the war during its later years. The city of Pittsburg after- 
wards arose at the locality, and in time became the second 
city in population and manufactures in the State. 

Franklin Serves the People. — In 1756 a new governor, 
"William Denny, was sent to Pennsylvania. The assembly 
was glad to get rid of Governor Morris, but soon found 
Governor Denny as hard to deal with. In fact, the gov- 
ernors were only agents for the Penns, and could not act as 
they wished. Denny had orders to veto all laws to tax the es- 
tates of the proprietaries or in any way to reduce their power 
and privileges. His effort to carry out these orders soon 
brought on the old quarrel, and in 1758 Franklin was sent 
to London as the agent of the people. After much trouble 
he succeeded in showing the king's ministers the true state 
of affairs, and had a bill passed allowing the taxation of the 
estates of the Penns and confirming all that the assembly 
claimed to be the just rights of the people of the province. 

The Pontiac "War. — For a brief period after the building 
of Fort Pitt the country was at peace and the Indians were 
quiet. But in 1763 a new war broke out under the Indian 
chief Pontiac. The frontiers of Pennsylvania were again 
wasted witli fire and sword, several forts were taken and 
their garrisons murdered, and the greatest suffering pre- 
vailed. Fort Pitt was besieged by a host of savages, who 
cut it off from the settlements. 

Colonel Bouquet's Victory. — Troops were soon in the 
field and marching to the west. Colonel Armstrong, the 
hero of Kittanning, again attacked and destroyed an Indian 
village! But the decisive battle of the war was fought by 
Colonel Bouquet, who was attacked by the savages while on 
his way to relieve Fort Pitt. 



THE UNITED STATES. 277 

His road led through a narrow and dangerous ravine, sev- 
eral miles long. This he proposed to pass in the night, hut 
just before reaching it he was met by a large body of In- 
dians and a desperate struggle began. The savages had 
left Fort Pitt for the attack, hoping to repeat their experi- 
ence with Braddock. Until sunset the soldiers fought against 
a concealed enemy, and the next morning the assault was 
renewed. The soldiers, drawn up in a circle, defended 
themselves bravely, but they were suffering from thirst and 
were in imminent danger of defeat and destruction. 

Fortunately, the colonel was an old Indian fighter. Two 
of his companies were withdrawn from his small force and 
ordered to make a show of retreat. The Indians were de- 
ceived. Fancying that a real retreat had begun, they set 
up the yell of triumph, broke from the woods, and rushed 
upon the weakened line. Suddenly they were met with a 
sharp fire upon their flank. The retreating companies had 
wheeled round the circle of the troops and made a sharp 
attack. The Indians gave way, and as they fled were as- 
sailed by two other companies, who had slipped out from 
the other side of the circle. The whole force now rushed 
upon the enemy with such vigor as to scatter them in defeat 
through the woods. Fort Pitt was relieved, the savages not 
returning to the siege. 

The Lancaster Outrage. — A sad event soon after took 
place. There had been some murders in Lancaster County, 
and certain people fancied that these had been done by 
some Christian Indians near the town of Lancaster. The 
Indian settlement was attacked by a party calling them- 
selves Paxton Rangers, and the six people found there were 
brutally murdered. The people of Lancaster placed the 
others in the prison for safety, but the rangers rode into 
the town on Sunday morning, while the people were at 

24 



278 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

church, broke into the jail, and killed the Indians, fourteen 
in all. A proclamation was issued by the governor for the 
arrest of the murderers, but none of them were brought to 
justice, they being supported by public sentiment. 

The March upon Philadelphia. — In fact, a party of their 
sympathizers soon after broke into insurrection and marched 
upon Philadelphia, whither one hundred and forty Chris- 
tian Indians had been brought from the Moravian settle- 
ments for safety. The alarmed authorities sent these In- 
dians to New York, but the governor of that province 
would not receive them, and the governor of New Jersey 
refused them a refuge in his province, so that they had to 
be brought back to Philadelphia. 

The backwoodsmen, who had set out in January, 1764, 
from five hundred to fifteen hundred strong, as variously 
estimated, at length reached Germantown, where they en- 
camped. They found the people of Philadelphia ready for 
them, and did not think it wise to venture further. The 
city was guarded by soldiers and artillery, and the quarters 
of the Indians were fortified with earthworks and cannon. 
Commissioners were sent to meet the invaders, Franklin 
among them, and they were easily induced to withdraw. 
Only one of their requests was granted, that a bounty 
should be offered for Indian scalps. This was not a very 
humane end to Penn's Indian policy of good will. 

IV.— THE PERIOD OF KEVOLUTION. 

The close of the war with the French and Indians was 
quickly followed by troubles with the British government, 
leading to war and independence. In these events, which 
affected the entire country, Pennsylvania took a promi- 
nent ]tart. 

The Stamp Act. — As soon as news came of the passage 



THE UNITED STATES. 279 

of the Stamp Act, in 1765, the assembly passed resolutions 
declaring that none but their own representatives had the 
right to tax Americans, and making a strong protest against 
taxation by the British Parliament. On the 5th of October 
the stamps were brought in a ship to Philadelphia. At 
once all flags were put at half-mast, bells w^ere muffled, and 
the city seemed to go into mourning. Meetings were held 
at which business men resolved not to use stamps, and to do 
no business with England until the law should be repealed. 

The Stamp Act was to go into efi:ect November 1, 1765. 
On the preceding day all the newspapers appeared with 
heavy black lines, as if in mourning, and no more papers 
were issued for twenty-one days. All the public oflices 
were closed, and no business was done in them till the next 
May, when word came that the law was repealed. The loss 
of business had made it a costly experiment to Great 
Britain. 

Joy at the Repeal. — The news of the repeal was greeted 
with joy in Philadelphia. The city was illuminated, bon- 
fires were kindled, and a gold lace hat was presented to the 
captain of the vessel that brought the good tidings. The 
king's birthday was celebrated by a public dinner on the 
banks of the Schuylkill. During this period John Penn, 
grandson of William Penn, was governor of Pennsylvania. 

The Tax on Tea. — The joy of the people did not last long. 
A tax was soon after laid by Parliament on tea, glass, paper, 
and some other articles.* But, as the people would not use 

* It was at this time that John Dickinson, of Philadelphia, wrote his 
famous " Farmer's Letters," which first awoke the people to the full mean- 
ing of the acts of Parliament. He professed to have a small farm on the 
Delaware, and to be content with his lot, though he feared that British tax- 
ation would soon affect his fortunes. He went on to tell his readers what a 
loss of their liberty would follow the tax on paper and glass, if they sub- 



280 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

these articles, all the taxes were removed in 1770, except 
a small one on tea. Ships laden with tea were sent to 
America, but no city would receive it. The ships which 
came to the Delaware were warned not to try to land their 
cargoes, and so returned to England. In Boston the tea 
was thrown overboard. 

First Continental Congress. — This treatment of his tea 
made King George so angry that he took steps which were 
sure to lead to war. Large meetings were held in Phila- 
delphia to sympathize with Boston, whose business the 
king had ruined,* and a convention met July 15, 1774, 
wdiich passed a resolution to call a congress of the colonies, 
declaring that the rights of the people were in danger. 
Other colonies took similar action, and the First Continental 
Congress met in Carpenters' Hall, Philadelphia, September 
5, 1774.t 

Enlistments. — As soon as the news of the battle of Lex- 
ington reached Philadelphia, a meeting was held and steps 
were taken to enlist soldiers. It was not long before a 
large force was under arms. John Pcnn, the governor, 
lost his authority, a" Committee of Safety" being appointed 
by the assembly to control all public affairs. 

Friends and Mennonites. — The authorities had a delicate 

mitted to it. Some years afterwards (in 1775) another stirring work came 
from Philadelphia, Thomas Paine's "Common Sense," which went far to 
convert the people's minds from insurrection to revolution. These were the 
two great appeals to the people of the Revolutionary period. 

* In May, 1774, Paul Revere rode from Boston to Philadelphia, sent 
thither by the leaders to persuade the Pennsylvanians to take part in the 
resistance to Briti.sh oppression. He was well received, and returned with 
messages of encouragement. 

f For the acts of this Congress, and of the Second Continental Congress, 
which met in the State House at Philadeljjhia, May 10, 1775, see pages 121, 
127, and 129 of the preceding " History of the United States." 



THE UNITED STATES. 281 

task to perform. Both the Friends and the German Men- 
nonites were forbidden by their religion to bear arms. The 
Mennonites were willing to pay taxes " to feed the hungry 
and give the thirsty drink," but the Friends said that they 
could not do anything in aid of war. They were, however, 
induced to contribute money for the public defence. 

Pennsylvania a State. — In July, 1776, a convention was 
held which declared l*cnnsylvania to be free from the power 
ot kings and proprietors and to be an independent State. 
At that time it had a population of over three hundred 
thousand, of whom more than ten thousand were in the 
field as soldiers, while every county had its militia force. 
There was a navy of fifteen ships and a number of smaller 
vessels. The iron foundries of the State were casting can- 
non and balls for the army, and forts and floating batteries 
were provided for the defence of the capital city of the new 
commonwealth. 

Washington's Retreat. — The war, which began at Boston 
and then came to New York, reached Pennsylvania in 
December, 1776, when Washington's small army crossed 
the Delaware and stationed itself along the river to protect 
the State from the enemy. There were less than three 
thousand men in the army ; they were suflEering from cold 
and hunger ; all hope was gone ; Congress left hastily for 
Baltimore, in fear that Philadelphia would be taken ; the 
revolution was at its lowest ebb. 

Aid to the Army. — But the people of Pennsylvania came 
nobly to Washington's aid. The farmers brought food, the 
townsmen brought clothing and medicines to the camp. 
Fifteen hundred men joined the army, making it strong 
enough for Washington's great Christmas night exploit, 
when he crossed the Delaware and captured the British 
force at Trenton. 

24* 



282 ^-^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

Pennsylvania Invaded. — The iuvasiou of Pennsylvania, 
thus averted, took place in 1777, when the British army- 
was transported on ships from N^ew York to Chesapeake 
Bay, landed at Elktoii, Maryland, and marched north with 
the purpose of capturing Philadelphia. Washington tried 
to stop the march of the British, and a severe battle was 
fought on Brandywine Creek, but the enemy was too 
strong, and the patriot army was defeated. 

Movements of the Armies. — The army retreated, a part 
of it resting at Chester for the night, the main body crossing 
the Schuylkill and camping at Germantown. The British 
established their camp at Village Green, in Delaware County, 
the farms and houses of that fertile district being widely 
plundered. 

Four days after the battle of Brandywine, Washington 
left his camp and marched towards the enemy. He pro- 
posed to fight another battle for the safety of Philadelphia. 
On the morning of September 16 the two armies faced each 
other. The skirmishers had begun firing, when there came 
up a violent storm of rain, so wetting the powder of the 
soldiers that it could not be used. Washington was there- 
fore obliged to withdraw. 

The Surprise at Paoli. — On the 20th, General Wayne, 
who was encamped at Paoli, was attacked at night by a 
strong force of British led by Tories of the neighborhood. 
After a desperate fight, Wayne managed to withdraw his 
men, though with a loss of about two hundred. This 
event was afterwards known as the " Massacre of Paoli." 
A monument now marks the battle-field. 

On September 23 the British army crossed the Schuylkill 
at Swedes' Ford, having deceived Washington by a pretence 
of crossing higher up. On the 25th it marched to German- 
town, and entered Philadelphia on the 26th. Congress had 



THE UNITED STATES. 283 

again left, this time for Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where a 
one-day session was held September 27. An extended 
session began at York, Pennsylvania, September 30. 

The Defence of the Delaware. — The British found it no 
easy matter to get their fleet up the Delaware to Pliiladel- 
phia. The Americans held Fort Mitflin on the Pennsylvania 
side and Fort Mercer on the New Jersey side, and it took 
the enemy two months to capture these forts. Fort Mercer 
was assaulted by a strong force of Hessian soldiers on 
October 22, but they were driven away with heavy loss. 
At the same time the war-vessels in the river fired on the 
forts, but they were attacked and defeated by the little 
Pennsylvania fleet. 

The Forts evacuated. — Finally the British general sur- 
rounded the forts with batteries of cannon, which fired 
upon them day and night. Yet the brave garrisons kept 
up the defence for nearly a month longer. Then, the forts 
being in ruins, they escaped with their cannon and stores. 
The little fleet was lost in an attempt to sail up past the 
city, and the British ships at length reached the wharves. 

The Battle of the Kegs. — An amusing incident followed 
the success of the British fleet. On the 7th of January, 
1778, a number of kegs were seen floating on the river past 
the city. The British watched them with alarm, thinking 
that the Americans had devised a plot to blow up their 
ships. They imagined that the kegs were filled with pow- 
der, to be in some way exploded if they should touch a 
ship. So the guns were turned on them, and the innocent 
kegs were battered with cannon-balls. Francis Hopkinson, 
a poet of that time, wrote a humorous ballad upon this inci- 
dent, calling it " The Battle of the Kegs." 

Germantown and "Whitemarsh. — The Americans were as 
active on land as on the water. On October 4 Washington's 



284 -^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

army attacked tlie British in tlieir camp at Germantown. 
The enemy was taken by surprise, and probably would 
have been defeated but for a fog that interfered with the 
American movements. On December 4 General Howe 
similarly tried to take Washington by surprise in his camp 
at Whitemarsh. But the Americans had been secretly 
warned and were ready for them, and the British marched 
back without tiring a shot. It is said that a woman named 
Lydia Darrach had heard the British officers talking of their 
plans and had managed to carry the news to the Americans. 

Valley Forge. — On December 11 the American army 
went into winter quarters at Valley Forge. It was a terrible 
winter the soldiers spent there. The cold was severe; the 
men had little clothing, and many of them had no shoes ; 
food was very scarce ; numbers of them died ; Washington 
did all he could for them, but he had much to contend 
with. A Quaker one day saw the general on his knees in 
the woods [>rayiiig to God for help. On going home he 
said to his wife, " If there is any one man on earth to 
whom the Lord will listen, it is George Washington." 

The British in Philadelphia. — Meanwhile, the British 
were passing a pleasant winter in Philadelphia, enjoying 
theatrical entertainments, feasts, and other pleasures. In 
May, 1778, they gave a grand fete to General Howe, who 
had been superseded by Sir Henry Clinton. It was called 
the Meschianza, or " medley," and was made up of a showy 
river procession, a tournament, fireworks, and a banquet. 
In the midst of it Captain McLane, a dashing cavalry 
officer in Washington's army, crept with his men up to the 
British redoubts, covered everything they could with tar, 
and set fire to it. A frightfal uproar followed in the city, 
drums were beat and cannon roared, but the unwelcome 
visitors all escaped to boast of their exploit. 



THE UNITED STATES. 285 

Lafayette attacked. — On the next day a strong British 
force left the city, in the hope of surprising Lafayette, who 
was encamped on Barren Hill, above Germantown. They 
expected to surround and cut him off, but he discovered 
them in time and slipped away, leaving the disgusted British 
only an empty camp. 

Aid from the French. — About the same time welcome 
news came to the camp. Benjamin Franklin had induced 
the King of France to recognize the independence of the 
American States and to send a fleet and an army to their 
aid. The news of this gave the British as much fear as it 
gave joy to the Americans. General Howe was afraid of 
being blockaded in the Delaware by a French fleet, and 
sent his own ships hastily to New York. On the 18th of 
June the British army left Philadelphia, to the great joy of 
all patriotic citizens, and started on a march to !N^ew York. 
Washington at once broke camp and followed, bringing 
the enemy to battle at Monmouth, New Jersey. Thus 
ended the invasion of Pennsylvania. 

The Stars and Stripes. — At this point it may be well to 
say something about the United States flag. Flags of sev- 
eral kinds were used in the opening years of the war, but 
the " Star-Spangled Banner" came into existence in Phila- 
delphia in 1777. A resolution was offered in Congress 
June 14 to the effect that the flag should have thirteen 
stripes, alternately red and white, and the union thirteen 
white stars in a blue field. The number thirteen indicated 
tlie thirteen original States. The first flag was made under 
the direction of Washington, aided by a committee of 
Congress, by Mrs. Betsy Ross, at her house, No. 239 Arch 
Street, Philadelphia. This house has become a place of 
pilgrimage for Philadelphia school-children on " Flag Day," 
June 15. 



286 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

The Settlement of Wyoming, — In the year 1778 a dread- 
ful event took place in the beautiful valley of Wyoming, in 
Northeastern Pennsylvania. This valley was first visited in 
1742 by Count Zinzendorf, a Moravian missionary from Ger- 
many. In 1762 a settlement was made there of people from 
Connecticut, who claimed that it belonged to that colony. 
This settlement was broken up by the Indians, and the 
people had to flee for their lives. 

In 1769 it was settled by Pennsylvanians. Some more 
people also came from (Connecticut, and disputes began, 
followed by fights, in which a number of persons were 
killed. This strife kept up until the war of the Revolution, 
when the people had to join hands against a new enemy. 
In 1776 there were about five thousand people in the 
valley. 

Wyoming Invaded. — In the summer of 1778 a party of 
British, Indians, and Tories, under Colonel John Butler, 
invaded the valley. Many of its fighting-men were in the 
army, 1)nt a small force was hastily raised and marched 
against the enemy. The invaders proved too strong: the 
patriot army was defeated, and many of the fugitives were 
killed by the Indians. 

Two days afterwards, July 5, tbe fort, to which many of 
the people had fled, was surrendered, on promise of protec- 
tion. Little protection was given. The Indians swarmed 
through the valley, burning and murdering, and the peoj^le 
were forced to floe to the forests and marshes, where many 
of them perished. 

Tbe Indians Punished. — The massacre at W3-oming was 
followed by Indian raids elsewhere in the northern part of 
the State. These kept up till August, 1779, when General 
Sullivan marched with a strong force into the Indian coun- 
try, destroyed the villages and stores of food, and punished 



THE UNITED STATES. 287 

the savages so severely that they were obliged to cease their 
raids. 

March to Yorktown. — The massacre was the last event 
of the war in Pennsylvania, In 1781 the American and 
French armies marched through Philadelphia on their way 
to Yorktown, Virginia, where the surrender of General 
Cornwallis brought the long and terrible struggle to an 
end. 

The Revolt of the Soldiers. — The close of the war filled 
the people with joy, but the soldiers were suffering for food 
and clothing, and had long been without pay. Congress 
made promises, but did nothing, and on the 1st of January, 
1782, a body of Pennsylvania troops left the camp at Morris- 
town, New Jersey, to march to Philadelphia and demand 
justice from their representatives. 

General Wayne, their commander, hurried after them, 
and tried to persuade them to return to camp. In the end 
he drew his pistol and threatened to shoot the leaders if 
they did not turn back. The men at once raised their mus- 
kets, telling him that they loved and respected him, but 
that if he fired his pistol they would kill him. 

They showed him their ragged clothing, told him of 
their sufferings for food, and insisted on going to demand 
justice from Congress. As they would not turn back, 
\V'ayne went with them. At Princeton they were met by 
a committee of Congress, who promised that their demands 
should be granted. Those whose time was up were allowed 
to go home ; the others went back to camp. The British 
commander at N^ew York, hearing of this revolt, sent secret 
agents to the soldiers to induce them to desert. He did not 
know the Pennsylvanians. They seized the agents and 
handed them over to General Wayne, by whom they were 
tried and hung as spies. 



288 -^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

v.— THE GROAVTH OF THE STATE. 

The Constitutional Convention. — Philadelphia,, then the 
largest city in the country, and the capital not only of Penn- 
sylvania but of the United States, became the scene of a 
very important event in the period following the war. A 
convention met there in 1787 to adopt a new system of 
government and form a constitution for the United States. 
This convention was held in the State-House, now known 
as Independence Hall ; Washington was its president, and 
its members included Benjamin Franklin, Robert Morris, 
and other eminent citizens of the State. 

Philadelphia the Capital. — The story of the Constitution 
belongs to the history of the United States. It will suffice 
to say here that Phihidelphia was the capital of the country 
from 1774 to 1789, and again, under the new constitution, 
from 1790 to 1800, when the capital was removed to Wash- 
ington, D.C. 

The State Constitution. — Benjamin Franklin was presi- 
dent of the convention which met on July 15, 1776, and 
declared Pennsylvania a State. On the 26th of September 
the old assembly of the province, which had existed nearly 
a hundred years, ceased to meet, and tiie authority of the 
Penns* was at an end. Two days afterwards the new con- 

* The loss of political control by the Penns did not affect their title to their 
landed estate in Pennsylvania, though the most of this was afterwards con- 
fiscated. Thouu;h William Ponn obtained little money from his })rovince, and 
had to go to prison for debt, it became very valuable to his sons and grandsons, 
who lived in state on the product of their quit-rents and their sales of land. It 
is estimated that their property in Pennsylvania in 1759 was worth four million 
pounds and yielded an annual income of ten thousand pounds. This at that 
time had about four times the value it would have now. In 1779, during the 
Revolution, the assembly gave the Penns one hundred and thirty thousand 
pounds in payment for their confiscated lands, and expressed their regret that 
they could not give more. The heirs retained all their manors and some pri- 



THE UNITED STATES. 289 

stitution was signed, and the new government of Pennsyl- 
vania began. 

Under this constitution an Assembly of Delegates made 
the laws and a Supreme Executive Council administered 
them. The President of the Council was the chief magis- 
trate of the State. A new convention was held in 1790 and 
a new constitution adopted. This constitution was based 
on that of the United States. It provided for two law- 
making bodies, — a Senate and a House of Representatives. 
A Governor took the place of the President of the Supreme 
Council. The first governor was Thomas Mifflin. The new 
government began Decem]:>er 21, 1790. 

The State Capital. — In 1799 the seat of government of 
the State was removed from Philadelphia to Lancaster, as 
a more central place. But as the western section of the 
State grew more populous, Lancaster ceased to be central, 
and in 1812 Harrisburg was chosen as the State capital. 
The building of a State-house began there in 1819, and was 
completed in 1821. 

Purchases of Land. — And now, having spoken of these 
political changes, we may sa}' something about the settle- 
ment of the State. It must not be supposed that the people 
took possession of the land just as they pleased, without re- 
gard to the rights of the Indians. We have told the story 
of the " walking purchase" made in 1737. Five other pur- 
chases of land were made by the Penns, the last and great- 
est being in 1768. In 1785 a purchase was made by the 
State authorities, whicli put an end to all Indian claims and 
gave the whole State to the whites. 

vate estates and quit-rents, and some of these are still held by the family. 
The British i^overnment gave them to repay their losses in the Kevolution an 
annuity of four thousand pounds a year, which was commuted in 1884 by a 
grant of sixty-seven thousand pounds. 
N t 26 



290 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

A Lake Port. — But Pennsylvania had no access to Lake 
Erie, from which it was cut off by a small tract of land, of 
triangular shape, belonging to the United States, This was 
bought by the State in 1788. It gave Pennsylvania a valu- 
able lake harbor, now the city of Erie. The State, as thus 
completed, is 302 miles 104 perches in its greatest length, 
175 miles 192 perches in its greatest width. Its average 
length is 280.39 miles; average width, 158.05 miles. 

The Perils of the Settlers. — The settlements were steadily 
pushed farther and farther west, large counties being first 
formed, which in time were broken up into smaller coun- 
ties. After the outbreak of war with the French the set- 
tlers were always in danger from the Indians. Each little 
community had its central fort, to which the people ran for 
safety whenever the savages appeared. The farmer went 
to his work with his musket swung at his side. The me- 
chanic kept his rille within reach of his hand. When a 
party of men met for any purpose, they stacked their arms 
within easy reach and placed a sentinel to watch for danger. 
Men were often obliged to fight their dusky foes as they ran 
in haste to the fort, perhaps with their wives and children 
before them. 

The Attack on Rice's Fort. — In 1782 one of these little 
settlements, on Buffalo Creek, was attacked by a party of 
Indians who had been defeated in an assault on Wheeling, 
Virginia. In the settlement was a block-house called Rice's 
Fort. The people, warned just in time of the danger, fled in 
haste to this stronghold, and were not long there before the 
savages burst with war-whoops from the woods, expecting 
to take the fort by storm. There were only six men within, 
but they were skilful riflemen, and soon drove their foes to 
the shelter of trees and logs. 

For nearly four hours the fight was kept up. The savages 



THE UNITED STATES. 291 

cried, " Give up ; too many Indian ; Indian too big. ISTo 
kill." But the frontiersmen did not trust their treacherous 
enemies. One of them was killed, but the five continued to 
fight against more than a hundred foes. Finally, hearing 
the approach of reinforcements, the savages fled, after burn- 
ing the buildings and killing all the cattle, sheep, and hogs 
of the inhabitants. 

The "Wedding- Party. — Many other stories of the perils 
of the settlers might be told. In one instance a wedding 
party was attacked by the savages when at the height of 
its enjoyment. The bride and groom and nearly all the 
others were taken prisoners, loaded with the plunder of the 
savages, and carried off" into a cruel captivity. 

The people living near by fled to the nearest settlement. 
One man who had his aged mother and a child to save was 
pursued so closely that he had to desert the child in order 
to save his mother. On his return the next day, to his 
heartfelt joy the child was found asleep in its bed, the only 
living being left by the savage foe. 

The Whiskey "War. — There was one difficulty which the 
Western settlers had to meet. They raised more grain than 
they needed for food. There were then no railroads nor 
canals, and they had no easy way to send this grain to the 
towns of the East, while there was little demand for it in 
the West. As it was not needed for food, they made whis- 
key from it, great quantities of corn and rye being thus 
used. It was easier to carry the whiskey to market than 
the grain, for a small quantity of whiskey represented many 
bushels of grain. But in 1790 Congress laid a tax on all 
distilled spirits. This law was violently opposed by the 
people of Western Pennsylvania, who declared that they 
would not pay the tax. Meetings were held, the officers of 
the law were resisted, and the excitement in time grew so 



292 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

great that several persons were tarred and feathered and 
the lives of the officials were not safe. 

The government tried to quiet the people and induce 
them to ohey the law, hut in vain. At length, in 1794, 
President Washington was obliged to call out the militia 
of Pennsylvania and the neighboring States to put down 
the rebellion. Fifteen thousand men were gathered and 
marched across the mountains towards the locality of the 
revolt. The coming of the soldiers soon settled the diffi- 
culty. A few of the leaders were held for trial, but no one 
was punished, and the " Whiskey War," as it was called, 
came quietly to an end. 

New Markets. — It was not long before the farmers began 
to find a market for their grain in the West, while the great 
national highway known as the Cumberland Road, from 
Cum1)erland, Maryland, across tlie mountains to Wheeling, 
Virginia, which was begun in 1806, made a new avenue of 
transportation to the East. 

The Hot Water Rebellion.— The " Whiskey War" was 
the work of the excitable Scotch-Irish of Western Pennsyl- 
vania. Soon after the Germans in the east of the State be- 
came disturbed by a law laying a tax on houses. The out- 
break got its name from the fact that a woman poured hot 
water on an assessor who was measuring her house for tax- 
ation. An auctioneer named Fries was the leader in the 
disturbance, and in March, 1799, he made his way at the 
head of a hundred armed men to Bethlehem and set free 
some prisoners who had been taken there. A force was 
now sent by the governor, and the revolt came to an end. 
Fries hid in a swamp, but was taken prisoner and con- 
demned to death. He was pardoned by President Adams. 

Yellow Fever. — Philadelphia has at various times been 
the seat of violent epidemics of yellow fever. The first of 



THE UNITED STATES. 293 

these was in 1699. In 1762 the fever raged terribly in the 
city, and also with great violence in 1793 and 1797. In 
1793 Stephen Girard, the celebrated Philadelphia mer- 
chant, showed the greatest feeling for the sick, whom he 
nursed in the hospital at imminent risk to his own life. 
The new ideas about cleanliness and the sanitary methods 
now in use have removed all danger of further visits of this 
dreaded disease. 

Growth of Pittsburg-. — Fort Pitt, the strongest fort west 
of the Alleghanies, in time became a place for traders to 
meet and settlers to locate. A few log huts were first built ; 
then a small village grew up ; finally a city developed. The 
Penn family owned the land about the forks of the rivers 
until 1784, when it was divided into lots and oiiered for 
sale. At that time Pittsburg was but a small place, trading 
by wagons and pack-horses with Baltimore and Philadel- 
phia. In 1786 its people numbered nearly five hundred, 
and the Pittsburg Gazette^ the first newspaper west of the 
mountains, was started. 

In 1816 Pittsburg became a city. The borough of Alle- 
ghany, on the opposite side of the Alleghany River, also in 
time was made a city, and the two, though still separate as 
cities, now form one great centre of trade and manufacture. 
In the production of iron and steel they have no equal in 
the country, while their trade by way of the Ohio, which 
soon became large, has been immensely extended by the aid 
of canals and railroads. 

The City of Erie. — In 1795, when the town of Erie, on 
the shore of Lake Erie, was laid out, there were only four 
families in what is now Erie County. This county was 
formed in 1800, having at that time nearly fifteen hundred 
inhabitants. Highways were laid out, one connecting with 
Pittsburg by way of the Alleghany River, and a largo trade 

25* 



294 ^^' ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

sprung u[) by way of the roads and the hike. Iron- and 
glass-ware, flour and grain, salt, whiskey, and bacon were 
some of tlie principal articles of trade. 

The Lakes in the War of 1812. — The town of Erie be- 
came a })oint of importance in 1812, after the second war 
with Great Britain began. The great lakes were at first in 
full possession of the enemy, and all the settlements along 
their shores were in danger. To change this state of affairs 
the government decided that a fleet should be built, and 
Erie was selected as the place of building. 

Building- a Fleet. — In the summer of 1812 a naval officer 
named Daniel Dobbins was sent to Erie with orders to 
build vessels, and by winter he had a small fleet well under 
way. Captain Oliver H. Perry was sent there in March, 
1813, to command the fleet. He found much to be done, 
but he set to work with energy to do it. Trees were cut 
in the forest, and in a short time their timber formed part of 
ships. The iron for the vessels was brought from Pittsburg 
by boat and wagon, and cannon and balls were transported 
from the same place. 

Perry's Victory. — In August the fleet was ready for 
action, and Perry set sail in search of the enemy. On the 
10th of September the two fleets met and fought, and by 
four o'clock in the afternoon every vessel in the British 
fleet had surrendered. Before sunset Perry sent to General 
Harrison his famous despatch, " We have met the enemy, 
and they are ours." 

Philadelphia defended. — Pennsylvania had little more to 
do with this war. British war-ships entered the Delaware 
and Chesapeake Bays in the summer of 1814, and volun- 
teers were called out. Earthworks were thrown up on the 
roads leading to Philadelphia, and a large number of men 
were soon under arms. The enemy did not enter Pennsyl- 



THE UNITED STATES. 295 

vania, but several thousand men were kept in the camps 
along the Delaware until the close of the year, when all 
danger was at an end. 

Slavery abolished. — We may conclude this review of 
political affairs by stating what was done on the subject of 
slavery. Negro slaves were kept in Pennsylvania from its 
origin until the close of the Revolution. This was against 
the wish of many of the people. The Friends and the Ger- 
man religious societies protested against the system, but it 
was kept up by British power until the war brought that 
power to an end. The trade in slaves was too valuable to 
the merchants of Great Britain to be given up. A law was 
passed on March 1, 1780, for the gradual abolition of slavery 
in Pennsylvania. The slaves then held were to continue 
such until their death, but all the children of slaves, born 
after that date, were to become free at the age of twenty- 
eight. The number of slaves soon began to decrease. In 
1790 there were 3737 ; in 1810, 795 ; in 1830, 67. In the 
census of 1850 one name still remained on the roll. Those 
slaves who had grown old in bondage were content to end 
their lives in the service of their masters. 

VI.— INDUSTKIAL DEVELOPMENT. 

Steamboat Inventors. — So far we have paid attention 
mainly to political matters. Now something needs to be 
said about the great industrial development of the State. 
It is of interest to know that the first experiments with 
steamboats were made on the Delaware. John Fitch placed 
a small steamboat on this river in 1787, and in 1790 had a 
passenger-boat running on the river at the speed of seven 
miles an hour. Robert Fulton, who invented the first suc- 
cessful steamboat, was born in Pennsylvania, and Oliver 
Evans made himself famous by his experiments on steam- 



296 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

wagons, one of which lie ran through the streets of Phila- 
delphia long before the days of the railroad locomotive. 

Canals. — Pennsylvania was one of the first States to 
consider the making of canals. In 1769 a survey for a 
canal between the Delaware and Chesapeake Bays was 
ordered by the American Philosophical Society of Philadel- 
phia. About the same time the assembly of the province 
had a survey made for a canal from the Delaware River to 
Pittsburg and Erie, a distance of five hundred and eighty- 
two miles. This canal project was strongly approved by 
the governor, but was beyond the power of the province to 
carry out. At that time Europe had no canal of such a 
length. Still earlier, in 1762, a survey for a canal from 
the Schuylkill to the Susquehanna had been made. This 
was the line afterwards followed by the Union Canal, begun 
in 1791 and completed in 1827. 

Various other canals were begun at a later date, the 
Schuylkill in 1816, the Lehigh in 1818, the Conestoga in 
1825, and the Pennsylvania in 1827. This last-named 
canal, which stretched far across the State, and was in con- 
formity with the project entertained over fifty years before, 
was four hundred and twenty-six miles in the total length 
of its several sections. In 1840 there were twelve hundred 
and eighty miles of canal in the State. 

Railroads. — The progress of canals was checked by that 
of railroads, which began shortly before 1830. The first 
railroad constructed in this country was a short road with 
wooden rails, built in 1806 in a quarry near Chester, Penn- 
sylvania. In 1827 a railroad nine miles long was con- 
structed from Mauch Chunk to the coal-mines in its vicinity. 
The next railroad in the State was the Carbondale road, 
extending from the Delaware and Hudson Canal to the 
mines, and on this was placed in 1829 the first locomotive 



THE UNITED STATES. 297 

ever used in this country, the " Stourbridge Lion," imported 
from England. 

By the end of 1835 the railroads of Pennsylvania, mostly 
built to transport coal, were three hundred and eighteen 
miles in length. At that time there were but one thousand 
miles in the whole country. The Philadelphia and Colum- 
bia Railroad (eighty-two miles) and the Portage Railroad 
(thirty-six miles) were opened in 1834. These, with the 
canals, formed a continuous line extending from Philadel- 
phia to Pittsburg. This was superseded by the Pennsyl- 
vania Central Railroad, completed in 1854. By that date 
there were many other railroads widely extended through 
the State. 

Anthracite Coal. — Its mines of coal and iron led to the 
early development of canals and railroads in Pennsylvania, 
and of these something must here be said. This State is 
remarkable for its great deposits of anthracite coal, which 
have no equal in Europe or elsewhere in America. This 
kind of coal, " stone coal" it has been called, is much harder 
than bituminous coal and not so easily burned, so that it 
took many years to bring it into general use. 

Coal Discoveries. — Anthracite coal was first discovered 
in the Wyoming Valley in 1768, and was first used by two 
blacksmiths who had set up a forge in that region. The 
coal of the Lehigh region was found in 1791 by a hunter 
named Philip Ginter, who, while hunting on Bear Mountain, 
nine miles west of Mauch Chunk, struck his foot against a 
black stone and saw other pieces of the same substance in 
the earth about the roots of a fallen tree. He had heard of 
the stone coal of Wyoming Valley, and took a piece of this 
home with him. It proved to be pure anthracite coal. In 
1793 the Lehigh Coal-Mine Company was formed, but it 
took years to bring its coal into use. 



298 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

The Schuylkill coal was also discovered by a hunter. 
This man, Nicho Allen, camped one night in 1790 under a 
ledge of rocks, building his fire on some pieces of black 
stone which had fallen from above. He woke in the night 
and found those stones red-hot and burning. Five years 
afterwards the blacksmiths of that region were using this 
black rock in their furnaces. 

The Burning- of Coal.— In 1803 the Lehigh Coal-Mine 
Company sent some boat-loads of coal to Philadelphia. It 
was hard to find a purchaser, but the city at length bought 
it to use at the water-works. No one there knew how to 
burn it, and in the end it was broken up and spread on the 
public foot-walks. 

William Morris took a wagon-load of Schuylkill coal to 
Philadelphia in 1810, but no one was willing to buy it. In 
1812 Colonel Shoemaker took nine loads to the city. Some 
of these were sold to blacksmiths, and one to the Fairmount 
Nail and Wire Works. 

Here an earnest eftbrt was made to burn it. A good fire 
was built in the furnace and the coal thrown in. For half 
a day the men spent their time in " poking and raking and 
stirring and blowing," but the coal would not burn. At 
dinner-time, worn out and disgusted, they slammed the 
doors of the furnace shut and went home to their meals. 
When they came back, to their astonishment, the furnace 
was red-hot and the coal at a white heat. All it had 
wanted was a draught from below. It was the hottest fire 
they had ever seen, and from that time there was no trouble 
in selling anthracite coal. Some from the Lehigh region, 
which was brought to the city in 1814, was sold to the wire- 
mill at twenty-one dollars a ton. 

Bituminous Coal. — The use of bituminous coal, which is 
very abundant in the western part of the State, began soon 



THE UNITED STATES. 299 

after settlers reached there. It was first burned by the 
smiths, and afterwards in furnaces, and later great quan- 
tities of it were sent down the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers 
to the towns of the West and South. 

Iron-Works. — The working of iron from the iron-mines 
of the State first began at Coventry Forge, in Chester 
County, in 1720. There were four blast-furnaces in opera- 
tion in 1728, and others were rapidly added. It was not 
until 1839 that anthracite coal was successfully used to re- 
duce iron ores, and from that time the production of iron 
very rapidly increased. 

Oil- Wells. — There is one other great natural product of 
Pennsylvania of which something must be said. When the 
whites first reached the western part of the State they found 
that the Seneca Indians had long been in the habit of visit- 
ing certain streams in that section to perform religious cere- 
monies. An oily scum covered the surface of these streams, 
and it was the custom of the Indians to set fire to this. As 
it flamed upward, the savages ran along the banks of the 
stream, dancing and singing. 

The white settlers first obtained this oil by dipping 
blankets into the water and then pressing out the oil. It 
was also found to exude from the earth, and finally, about 
1860, men began to sink artesian wells, in the hope of 
finding oil deep in the earth. They were very successful 
in this, and the production and refining of petroleum or 
rock oil have grown into immense industries. From some 
of the wells came up great quantities of gas which could 
be burned, and this was conducted in pipes to Pittsburg 
and other cities, where it has been long used in houses and 
workshops in place of coal. 

Manufacturing- Cities, — The abundance of iron, coal, 
oil, and other products of nature has had much to do 



300 ^1^' ELKMKNTARy HISTORV OF 

witji the industrial history of Pennsylvania, which has 
taken a leading position among the manufacturing States 
of the Union. Its largest cities, Philadelphia and Pitts- 
hui'g, rank high among the centres of industry of the 
world, while Scranton, Ivcading, Pottsville, and other cities 
of the coal and iron regions are similarly active in pro- 
duction. 

Colonial Production. — During the colonial period ac- 
tivity in manufacture was prevented by British laws, only 
some simple articles for home use being made. There 
were saw- and grist-mills, linen and woollen goods were 
woven at home, and many vessels were built in the ship- 
yards on the Delaware, but it was not until after the Revo- 
lution that production became active. 

The abundance of iron ore was early discovered, but 
the manufacture of iron Avas held in check by the laws of 
Great Britain, and little could be done until the province 
had become a State and its people were free to make for 
themselves the goods they needed. 

Mines and "Workshops. — During the century and more 
of its existence as a State the progress of Pennsylvania in 
mining and manufactures has been very great. The yield 
of its mines of coal and iron has been enormous, its oil- 
wells have supplied the world with a valuable product, 
and its workshops have developed until they are surpassed 
nowhere in the world. In the workshops of Pittsburg 
everything that can be made of iron is produced, while 
Philadelphia is celebrated throughout the world for the 
variety, abundance, and value of its manufactured goods. 

The Industries of Philadelphia. — In its early history 
Philadelphia was noted for its active shipping; interests, in 
which it surpassed any other city of the New World. This 
supremacy it has not held, New York and Boston being far 



THE UNITED STATES. 301 

better situated for commerce. But in manufactures it has 
grown to be one of the great cities of the world, having an 
enormous ship-building establishment, immense workshops 
for the manufacture of locomotives and other fabrics of 
iron' and steel, woollen and cotton goods, carpets, refined 
sugar, and many other products, so that from end to end 
it is a great hive of industry and a home of comfort and 
abundance. 

Book-Publishing-. — For a long period after the Revolution 
Philadelphia was the great book-publishing centre of the 
country. There were all the great publishing houses, and 
there the leading magazines were issued. To these most 
of the able young writers of the country contributed. 
Charles Brockden Brown, the first successful American 
novelist, Avas a Philadelphian. It was long thought that 
no magazine could succeed unless published in Philadelphia. 
Of late years, however, Philadelphia has lost its eminence 
in this direction, though it is still an active publishing 
centre. 

Early Schools. — The people of Pennsylvania have ever 
been the warm friends and advocates of education, and in 
the early years of the colony provision was made for the 
instruction of its youth. Under a law enacted in the first 
year of the province, a school was opened at Philadelphia 
in 1683. This school was taught by Enoch Flowers, and 
in 1689 the Friends opened a school at Philadelphia, for 
which "William Penn selected the motto, "Good instruc- 
tion is better than riches," This school still exists as the 
William Penn Charter School. In 1692 a school was kept 
at Darby. 

Higher Education.— In 1736 the "Log College," a 
classical school, was established in Bucks County, and 
thirteen years later a similar school was opened at New 

26 



302 A^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

London, Chester County. The first school exclusively for 
the education of girls was established at Bethlehem, in 
1749, by the Moravians, who also opened a boj's' school, 
called Nazareth Hall, at Nazareth, in 1785. In 1794 a 
seminary for young ladies was established at Lititz. To 
the German Baptists, usually known as Bunkers, belongs 
the credit of having opened at Ephrata, Lancaster Coumy, 
in 1740, the first Sabbath-school in America. 

Free Schools. — The State Constitution of 1790 made it 
the duty of the Legislature to provide schools for the free 
instruction of the children of the poor, but no law establish- 
ing schools for the free education of all classes was passed 
until 1834. In the following year a vigorous eftbrt was 
made by the enemies of this system for the repeal of the 
law. In this crisis Mr. Thaddeus Stevens, a member of the 
Legislature, came to the rescue, making speeches through- 
out the State and rousing the press to the support of the 
free school system. His efforts were successful, and com- 
mon school education has since that time existed in Penn- 
sylvania. The system of supervision by county superin- 
tendents was adopted in 1854, and the first State normal 
school was founded in 1857. At present Pennsylvania 
has thirteen normal and more than twenty-five thousand 
common schools, while the pupils on the school rolls 
number more than one million one hundred and twenty- 
five thousand. 

Banking Institutions. — In the financial development of 
the country Pennsylvania long held a leading place. The 
Bank of North America, the first bank in the United States, 
was founded at Philadelphia in 1781. It was due to the 
genius of Robert Morris, the great financier of the Revo- 
lution. Ten years afterwards, in 1791, the first Bank of 
the United States was incorporated in Philadelphia. In 



THE UNITED STATES. 



303 



tlie following year the United States Mint was established 
in that city, and the coinage of money began. 

The first United States bank closed in 1811, and a second 
one was chartered in 1816 to run for twenty years. In 1832 




VNITED STATES BANK. 



a new charter was applied for, Imt President Jackson vetoed 
the bill, and the bank went out of existence in 1836. The 
handsome edifice of white marble of Grecian architecture, 
built for it in 1819-24, is now used as the United States 
Custom-House and also as the Sub-Treasury at Philadelphia. 
The Bank of North America, the oldest banking institution 
in the New World, is still actively engaged in business. 



VII.— RECENT HISTORY. 



Since the war of 1812-15 Pennsylvania has grown rapidly 
in wealth and population, its history presenting few of those 
striking events which attract the attention of the historian, 
but being marked by the steady succession of those steps of 



304 ^N ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

industrial and social progress upon which the comfort and 
liappiness of mankind depend. 

Mob Rule. — For years during this period the city of 
Phihidclphia sank to a low level as a place of peaceful resi- 
dence, being at the mercy of mobs and organized bands of 
rioters. This state of aftairs continued for a long time, 
its worst phase being reached between the years 1840 and 
1850. 

The Fire Companies. — Before 1825 the fire companies 
had been composed of respectable people, but after that 
date men of rough character made their way into them, and 
for many years they were centres of riot and disorder. 
Figlits between rival companies were common, and build- 
ings were often set on fire to form an opportunity for a 
fight. Buildings would be allowed to burn while rival fire- 
men were fighting for the possession of a firc-phig, goods 
were ruined by water thrown without discretion, and houses 
were plundered by thieves in tlio dress of firemen. 

Other Rioters. — In addition to the fire companies and 
their Ijrigand retainers there were other ":ano:s of rioters, 
calling themselves Schuylkill Rangers and other names, 
who made certain districts unsafe to live in. It was danger- 
ous to be out at night ; these gangs indulged in desperate 
fights with one another, and even the boys imitated them 
by stone fights, which made the streets unsafe. The police 
force was weak and inefficient, and it was not until after tlie 
civil war that respect for law and order began to prevail. 

The Negroes attacked. — During this period the negroes 
of the city were frequently attacked by mobs of the igno- 
rant and brutal classes. In one of these, in 1835, the 
negroes were hunted for two niglits, their houses burned, 
many of them injured, and most of them driven away from 
the city. In 1838 Pennsylvania Hall, where some women 



THE UNITED STATES. 305 

were holding an anti-slavery meeting, was set on fire and 
burned to the ground. A church and a shelter for colored 
children were also burned. There were similar riots in 
1842 and 1849, in which halls and churches were burned, the 
authorities making no effort to protect the persecuted negroes. 

The Native American Riots. — The worst riots of the city 
were those of 1844, when the " Native Americans" — a so- 
ciety opposed to the immigration of foreigners — attacked 
the Irish Catholic population of the city. These riots con- 
tinued at intervals for several months, and were attended 
with frequent and destructive street-fights. The militia were 
called out, but were fought by the mob, who had obtained 
cannon, which they dragged with muffled wheels through 
the dark streets to fire on the soldiers. Before the outbreak 
ended many lives had been lost, while thirty houses, three 
churches, and a convent were burned. 

The District System. — This state of affairs was partly 
due to the division of the city into districts and boroughs, 
each with its own laws and officials. The city itself was a 
small area, extending from Vine to South Street and from 
the Delaware to the Schuylkill, — two miles long by one 
mile wide. Around it were the districts of South wark, 
Northern Liberties, Moyamensing, Spring Garden, etc., and 
various boroughs and townships, there being twenty-nine 
divisions in all. 

Consolidation. — This state of affairs continued until 1854, 
when a consolidation act was passed, which did away with 
this system, and brought all the divisions within the city, 
which was extended to the limits of the county. Since 
then it has been much more easy to govern it, and the 
period of riot and disorder has passed away. 

A Pennsylvania President. — In 1856 James Buchanan, a 
native of Franklin County, Pennsylvania, was elected Presi- 

ic 26* 



306 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



dent of the United States. The country was at peace, 
though in a state of great excitement over the slavery 
question, wlien he took his seat. When he retired, March 
4, 1861, it was on the verge of war. 

The Call for Troops.— On the 15th of April President 
Lincoln issued his first call for troops. At once, in every 
part of the State, men hastened to enlist, and on the morn- 
ing of the 18th five companies from Pennsylvania marched 
into Washington, being the first of the volunteers to reach 
the national capital, which at that time was thought to be 
in great danger. In ten days after the date of the Presi- 
dent's proclamation twenty-five Pennsylvania regiments, 
numbering more than twenty-five thousand men, were 
ready to take part in the war. 

Some Leading- Pennsylvanians. — Simon Cameron, Sec- 
retary of War, a native of Pennsylvania, advised the Presi- 
dent to call out half a million of men 
and use every effort to overthrow the 
rebellion at the start. Thaddeus Ste- 
vens, a member of Congress from Penn- 
sylvania, urged the calling out of a 
million of men. They both held that 
it would be wise to set free and arm 
the slaves, that they might be used in 
the war. Andrew Curtin, the governor 
of the State, was one of the most active 
of the Northern governors in supplying 
the government with men and materials 
for the war. 
The Reserve Corps. — On the 15th of May a bill was 
jiassed by the Legislature calling out a body of troops 
known afterwards as the Pennsylvania Reserves. They 
numbered fifteen regiments, and were called into the field 




HON. THADDEUS STEVENS. 



THE UNITED STATES. 307 

immediately after the battle of Bull Run, when Washing- 
ton was again in danger from the enemy. They served 
with distinguished gallantry in the fiercest battles of the 
war. At the head of the Reserves was Major-General 
McCall ; its brigadiers were Generals Meade, Reynolds, and 
Ord, all of whom became famous in the war. 

The Refreshment Saloons. — Philadelphia did a noble ser- 
vice in the great struggle by feeding the weary and hungry 
regiments who passed through that city on their way to 
Washington. On the 27th of May, 1861, the Union Vol- 
unteer Refreshment Saloon w^as opened, and the Cooper 
Shop Volunteer Refreshment Committee was soon after 
organized. Each regiment found awaiting it water for 
washing and bathing, clean towels, an abundance of well- 
cooked food, and numbers of active and patriotic attend- 
ants. These saloons were kept open during the war, and 
fed more than a million of men. A hospital for the sick 
was also established, and the generous people of Philadel- 
phia won the warm thanks of the President and of the 
governors of the Eastern and Northern States for their aid 
to the soldiers. 

Chambersburg raided. — The first invasion of Pennsyl- 
vania took place on the 10th of October, 1862, shortly after 
the battle of Antietam, when a party of Confederate cav- 
alry, under General Stuart, made a raid through Franklin 
County, burning the railroad buildings at Chambersburg 
and destroying a large amount of war material. 

Battle of Gettysburg. — In the following summer the 
whole Confederate army of Virginia invaded the State, 
within whose limits was fought one of the greatest battles 
of modern times. This was the famous battle of Gettys- 
burg, the turning-point in the great struggle for the exist- 
ence of the nation. 




308 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

What took place at Gettysburg belongs to the history 
of the United States. For an account of the battle, see 
page 208 of the preceding " History 
of the United States." General Lee's 
hope was to defeat the army of the 
!N^orth and occupy the rich city of 
Philadelphia, which would have been 
a terrible disaster to the Union cause. 
Small parties of Confederate cavalry 
seized on Carlisle, York, and other 
places, burned the bridge across the 
GENERAL (jEoRGE G. MEADE. Susquelianua at Columbia and other 
bridges, tore up the railroad tracks, 
and did what other damage they could. But the defeat at 
Gettysburg put an end to all General Lee's plans, and on 
the night of the 3d of July what was left of his army re- 
treated in haste towards the Potomac. More than thirty 
thousand of his soldiers had been killed, wounded, or 
remained as captives. 

The Burning of Chambersburg. — A third invasion of 
Pennsylvania took place in July, 18G4, when a party of cav- 
alry from General Early's army made a rapid raid through 
the western part of the State, the town of Chambersburg 
being again entered. The people were ordered to pay two 
hundred thousand dollars in gold or half a million in paper 
money if they would save their town from ruin. This they 
were not able to do, and the town was set on lire, no time 
being allowed for the removal of the sick or infirm. The 
flames destroyed two-thirds of the houses, the loss to the 
people being estimated at two million dollars. 

The Sanitary Fair. — On June 7, 1864, there was opened 
at Philadelpliia a great sanitary fair for the benefit of the 
Sanitary Commission of the army. The buildings were 



THE UNITED STATES. 309 

erected on Logan Square, which they completely covered, 
and a large sum of money was raised for the use of that 
noble work of benevolence. 

Soldiers' Orphans. — Governor Curtin had early pledged 
the State to take care of the children of volunteer soldiers 
who might fall in the war, and the Legislature passed a law 
for this purpose in 1864. In consequence soldiers' orphans' 
schools were established in diiferent parts of the State, w^here 
the children of fallen patriots were taken care of and edu- 
cated, and at the age of sixteen were put in positions to learn 
trades or in business situations. 

Pennsylvania in the "War. — During the four years of war 
Pennsylvania sent to the field two hundred and seventy 
regiments and several companies, the whole numbering 
three hundred and eighty-seven thousand two hundred and 
eighty-four men. Li addition to the generals in command 
of the Reserve Corps, already named, Pennsylvania supplied 
several other officers who became of great prominence in the 
army. Of these maybe named Generals George B. McClel- 
lan and Winfield S. Hancock, both of whom afterwards be- 
came candidates for the office of President of the United 
States, and General John W. Geary, who was elected Gov- 
ernor of Pennsylvania in 1866. We have already spoken 
of General Meade, who was in command at the battle of 
Gettysburg, and General Reynolds, who died on the field in 
that desperate struggle. 

The State Constitution. — In 1701 the assembly of the 
province of Pennsylvania adopted a constitution, to which 
William Penn gave his assent. In it the principles of 
American liberty were clearly outlined, some of its pro- 
visions being similar to those of the Constitution of the 
United States. In 1776, shortly after the declaration of in- 
dependence, a State constitution was formed, and another 



310 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

in 1790, based in a measure on that of the United States. 
This held good until 1838, when a new constitution was 
adopted, which was amended in the years 1850, 1857, and 
1864. In 1873 a constitutional convention was held, in 
which the present constitution of the State was prepared 
and adopted. 

Centennial Exhibition. — As the years moved on and the 
hundredth anniversary of American independence came 
near, it was resolved to celebrate this important anniversary 
by a great World's Fair ; and as the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence had been made and signed in Pliiladelphia, that 
city was selected as the proper site for the celebration. 

Three j'ears before, in 1873, a large banking-house in 
Philadelphia had failed, and a panic begun from which the 
country was still suffering. This interfered in part with the 
success of the fair, but it proved to be one of the largest and 
most important exhibitions of the works of human art and 
industry ever held. The buildings were erected in Fair- 
mount Park, and covered a great extent of ground, the 
Main Hall covering twenty acres. Many millions of per- 
sons visited the ftiir, and many valuable lessons were learned 
from it. One of these was that America was far behind 
Europe in art work. Since then there has been a great de- 
velopment in American art, which had its origin in the art 
display at the Centennial Exhibition. But it was found that 
in machinery and invention America had nothing to learn 
from Europe, but much to teach it. 

The Molly Maguires. — For about ten years before the 
centennial period the coal-mining regions had been kept in 
a state of terror by the acts of a secret society of Irish 
miners, known as the Molly Maguires. Many murders 
were committed, mostly at night, and the laws were openly 
defied. None dared give evidence against the murderers, 



THE UNITED STATES. 311 

for fear of being themselves killed, and the band of assassins 
grew every year bolder and more dangerous. At length a 
detective named McParlan joined the society and learned 
its secrets, which he revealed to the authorities in 1876. 
Arrests were then made among the leaders of the Molly 
Maguires, and in that and the following year a number of 
them were convicted and executed for murder. This action 
broke up the society. 

The Railroad Strike. — In 1877, the year after the World's 
Fair, great strikes broke out in Pennsylvania. The business 
depression which began in 1873 had been felt by workmen 
in a lowering of wages. In 1877 several railroad companies 
reduced the wages of their men. The strike that followed 
extended through most of the Northern States, and for two 
weeks the trains were prevented from moving. A strike 
of the coal-miners of Pennsylvania also took place, and in 
all about one hundred and fifty thousand men stopped 
work. Rioting followed, much property Avas destroyed, 
and a number of lives were lost. 

The worst of the riots were at Pittsburs:. Here the 
State militia were attacked by a furious mob, and great 
numbers of freight-cars were plundered and burned. The 
railroad buildings were set on fire, the total loss being 
nearly three millions of dollars. Finally United States 
troops had to be sent to Pittsburg to suppress the riot. 
During the outbreak nearly one hundred persons were 
killed. 

Anniversary Occasions. — The centennial celebration of 
1876 was soon followed by other important celebrations. 
In 1882 came the two-hundredth anniversary of the landing 
of William Penn, and this was celebrated at Philadelphia 
by suitable ceremonies. In 1887 arrived the hundredth an- 
niversary of the adoption of the United States Constitution, 



312 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

wliicli was celebrated in Philaclelpliia by a series of grand 
processions, military and industrial. 

Electrical Exhibition, — In 1884 an International Elec- 
trical Exhibition was held in Philadelphia, in which all the 
discoveries made up to tliat time were displayed. It was 
the most important exhibit of electrical inventions that had 
been held up to that date. It is proposed to make in 1899 a 
grand national exhibit of products and manufactures. 

Restoration of Independence Hall. — The anniversary 
celebrations mentioned were followed by a desire to restore 
Independence Hall to the condition in which it existed 
during the Revolution. This restoration was completed in 
1898, all the later buildings being removed and the rooms 
brought back to their old state. 

Liberty Bell. — In this hall is carefully preserved the most 
valuable historical relic alike of Pennsylvania and of the 
United States, the old bell which i-aug out to the world 
the story of American independence in 1776. This bell, 
received in Philadelphia in 1752, bears the strikingly sig- 
nificant inscription, " Proclaim liberty throughout all the 
land, to all the inhabitants thereof." 

It was last rung on the morning of July 8, 1835, when 
it cracked while being tolled in memory of Chief Justice 
Marshall. Since then the bell has three times left the city, 
having been sent to the exhibitions at New Orleans, Chicago, 
and Atlanta, at which places it formed a principal centre 
of attraction. It is doubtful if it will be permitted to leave 
its resting-place in Independence Hall again, it being feared 
that some accident might befall it. 

Washington Monument. — In 1897 a grand equestrian 
statue of George Washington was erected at the entrance 
of Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, by the Society of the 
Cincinnati. The dedication was made the occasion of 



THE UNITED STATES. 313 

grand military aud bicycle processions, presided over by 
President McKinley. The monument is one of the finest 
and most artistic in the United States. 

Johnstown Flood, — The most terrible disaster ever known 
in the United States took place at Johnstown, a busy manu- 
facturing city in the central region of the State, on May 31, 
1889. The Conemaugh River was flooded by the bursting 
of a large dam several miles above the city, which was com- 
pletely destroyed by the rushing torrent. More than two 
thousand persons were drowned and ten million dollars' 
worth of property was destroyed. Everywhere throughout 
the State the people gave freely for the aid of the sufferers, 
and for months charity and sympathy seemed to be their 
only thoughts. 

The Homestead Strike. — We have one more serious 
strike to speak of, — that which took place at the steel- 
works at Homestead, near Pittsburg, in 1892. Detectives 
were hired by the proprietors to protect their works, and 
these were fired upon and taken prisoners by the strikers, 
men being killed on both sides. The militia of the State 
had to be called out, and the works guarded for several 
weeks, before order was restored. The loss was great to 
the owners and the workmen, and the State was put to a 
large expense. 

The State Capitol burned. — The State capitol at Harris- 
burg, the corner-stone of which was laid May 31, 1819, and 
the main building completed in 1821, caught fire on Feb- 
ruary 2, 1897, and was burned to the ground. Fortunately, 
the most valuable of the public records were saved. A 
strong effort was made to have the State capital removed to 
Philadelphia, but it was decided to make no change, and a 
new capitol is about to be erected on the ground which had 
been occupied by the old one. 
o 27 



314 



AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 
COUNTIES IN PENNSYLVANIA. 



Counties. 



Chester . . . . 

Bucks 

Philadelphia . . 
Lancaster . . . 

York 

Cumberland . . 

Berks 

Northampton . 
Bedford . . . . 
Northumberland 
Westmoreland . 
Washington . . 
Fayette . . . . 
Franklin. . . . 
Montgomery . . 
Dauphin .... 
Luzerne .... 
Huntingdon . . 
Alleghany . . . 
Delaware . . . 
Mifflin . . . . 
Somerset .... 
Lycoming . . . 
Greene .... 
Wayne .... 
Armstrong . . . 
Adams . . . . 

Butler 

Beaver .... 

Centre 

Crawford . . . 

Erie 

Mercer .... 
Venango . . . 
Warren .... 
Indiana .... 
Jefferson .... 
McKean .... 

Potter 

Tioga 

Cambria .... 
Clearfield . . . 
Bradford . . . 
Susquehanna . . 
Schuylkill . . . 



When 
formed. 



1682 
1682 
1682 
1729 
1749 
1750 
1752 
1752 
1771 
1772 
1773 
1781 
1783 
1784 
1784 
1785 
1786 
1787 
1788 
1789 
1789 
1795 
1796 
1796 
1796 
1800 
1800 
1800 
ISOO 
1800 
1800 
1800 
1800 
1800 
1800 
1803 
1804 
1804 
1804 
1804 
1804 
1804 
1810 
1810 
1811 



County towns. 



West Chester 
Doylestown . 
Philadelphia 
Lancaster . . 
York .... 
Carlisle . . . 
Reading . . 
Easton . . . 
Bedford. . . 
Sunbury . . 
Greensburg . 
Washington . 
Union town . 
Chambersburg 
Norristown . 
Harrisburg . 
Wilkesbarre . 
Huntingdon . 
Pittsburg . . 
Media . . . 
Lewistown . 
Somerset . . 
Williamsport 
Waynesburg 
Honesdale 
Kittanning . 
Gettysburg . 
Butler . . . 
Beaver . . . 
Bellefonte . . 
Meadville . . 
Erie .... 
Mercer . . . 
Franklin . . 
Warren . . . 
Indiana. . . 
Brookville . 
Smethport . 
Coudersport . 
Wellsborough 
Ebensburg , 
Clearfield . . 
Towanda . . 
Montrose . . 
Pottsville . . 



THE UNITED STATES. 



315 



COUNTIES IN PENNSYLVANIA {Continued). 



Counties. 


When 
formed. 


County towns. 


When laid 
out. 


Lehigh 


1812 
1813 
1813 
1813 
1814 
1820 
1831 
1836 
1839 
1839 
1842 
1843 
1843 
1846 
1847 
1848 
1850 
1850 
1850 
1855 
1860 
1878 


Allentown 

Lebanon 

Bloom.'iburg 

Lewisburg 

Milford 

New Bloomfield 

Mifflintown 

Stroudsburg 

Clarion 


1751 


Lebanon 

Columbia 

Union 


1750 
1802 

1785 


Pike 


1800 


Perrv 


1822 


Juniata 


1791 


Monroe 


1806 


Clarion 


1840 


Clinton 

"Wyoming 

Carbon 


Lockhaven 

Tunkhannock 

Mauch Chunk 

Ridgway 

Hollidaysburg 

Laporte 

Tionesta 

McConnellsburg 

New Castle 

Danville 

Middleburg 

Emporium 

Scranton • 


1833 
1790 
1815 


Elk 

Blair 


1843 
1820 


Forest 

Fulton . . . „ 


1850 
1852 

1786 


Lawrence 

Snvder 


1802 
1790 
1800 


Lackawanna 


1861 
1840 



GOVERNORS OF THE SWEDISH AND DUTCH COLONIES ON 
•THE DELAWARE, OF THE ENGLISH PROVINCE, AND OF 
THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



1638-41. 
1641-43. 
1643-53. 



Peter Minuit. 
Peter Hollender. 
John Printz. 



8WEDI.SH. 

1653-54. John Pappegoya. 
1654-55. John Claude Rysingh. 



DUTCH. 

1655-57. J()hn Paul Jacquet. 1658-63. William Beekman (com- 

1657-59. Jacob Alrichs* (city). panv)- 

1659-63. Alexander d'Hinoyossa 1663-64. Alexander d'Hinoyossa.f 

(city). 
1657-58. Goeran Van Dyck (com- 
pany). 

* Colony divided into city and company, 1657. 
f Colony united, 1663. 



316 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

ENGLISH. 

1664-67. Richard Nicholls. 1667-73. Francis Lovelace. 



1673-74. Peter Alrichs, 

Deputy Gove7-nor. 

ENGLISH. 

1674-81. Sir Edmund Andros. 

WILLIAM PENN, PROPRIETOR. 

1681-82. William Markhain, 1695-99. AVilliam Markham (under 

Deputy Governor. restored proprietorship), 

1682-84. William Penn. Deputy Governor. 

1684-86. The Council (Thomas 1699-1701. William Penn. 

Lloyd, Presideni). 1701-03. Andrew Hamilton, 

1686-88. Five Commissioners ap- Lieutenant Governor. 

pointed hy Penn. 1703-04. The Council (Edwiud 
1688-90. John Blackwell, Shippen, President). 

Deputy Governor. 1704-09. John Evans, 
1690-91. The Council (Thomas Lieufemmt Governor. 

Lloyd, President). 1709-17. Charles Gookin, 

1691-92. Thomas Lloyd, Lieutenant Governor. 

Deputy Governor. 1717-18. Sir William Keith, 
1693-95. Benjamin Fletcher, Lieutenant Governor. 

Royal Governor of New York. 

JOHN, RICHARD, AND THOMAS PENN, PROPRIETORS. 

1718-26. Sir William Keith, 1736-38. The Council (James 

Lieutenant Governor. Logan, President). 

1726-36. Patrick Gordon, 1738-47. George Thomas, 

Lieutenant Governor. Lieutenant Governor. 

JOHN PENN D. 1746. RICHARD AND THOMAS, PROPRIETORS. 

1747-48. The Council (Anthony 1756-59. William Denny, 

Palmer, President). Lieideyiant Governor. 

1748-54. James Hamilton, 1759-63. James Hamilton, 

Lieutenant Governor. Lieutenant Governor. 

1754-56. Robert H. Morris, 1763-71. John Penn, son of Richard, 

Deputy Governor. Lieuteyiant Governor. 



THE UNITED STATES. 317 

RICHARD PENN D. 1771. JOHN AND THOMAS, PROPRIETORS. 

1771. The Council, (James Hamil- 1773-76. John Penn, 

ton, . President). Lieutenant Governor. 

1771-73. Richard Penn, brother of 
John, 

Lieutenant Governor. 

UNDER FIRST STATE CONSTITUTION. 

1776-77. Committee of Safety (Ben- 1781-82. William Moore, 

jamin Franklin, President of Sup. Ex. Council. 

Chairman). 1782-85. John Dickinson, 

1777-78. Thomas Wharton, Jr., President of Sup. Ex. Cotmcil. 

President of Sup. Ex. Council. 1785-88. Benjamin Franklin, 

1778. George Bryan, vice Wharton, President of Sup. Ex. Council. 

deceased. 1788-90. Thomas Mifflin, 

1778-81. Joseph Reed, President of Sup. Ex. Council. 
Preside7it of Sup. Ex. Council. 

UNDER CONSTITUTION OF 1790. 

1790-99. Thomas Mifflin. 1820-23. Joseph Hiester. 

1799-1808. Thomas McKean. 1823-29. John A. Shulze. 

1808-17. Simon Snyder. 1829-35. George Wolf. 

1817-20. William Findlay. 1835-39. Joseph Ritner. 

UNDER CONSTITUTION OF 1838. 

1839-45. David R. Porter. 1855-58. James Pollock. 

184.5-48. Francis R. Shunk. 1858-61. William F. Packer. 

1848-62. William F. Johnston, vice 1861-67. Andrew G. Curlin. 

Shunk, resigned. 1867-73. John W. Geary. 
1852-55. William Bisler. 



UNDER CONSTITUTION OF 1873. 

1873-79. John F. Hartranft. 1887-91. James A. Beaver. 

1879-83. Henry M. Hoyt. 1891-95. Robert E. Pattison. 

1883-87. Robert E. Pattison. 1895-99. Daniel H. Hastings, 

27* 



318 AN ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 



CHKONOLOGICAL TABLE OF INTERESTING EVENTS NOT 
MENTIONED IN THE PRECEDING HISTORY. 

1642. Lutheran catechism transited into the Indian language by Campanius. 
1646. Church built on Tinicum Island. First mention made of Upland, 

now Chester. 
1654. Treaty at Tinicum between the Swedes and the Indian chiefs. 
1657. School at New Amstel (New Castle), the first on record in the colony. 
1669. Block-house built at Wicaco ; used as a church in 1G77. 
1679. The first English child born in Pennsj-lvania. 

1682. The first English child born in Philadelphia. Letitia House erected 

for William Penn ; now preserved in Fairmount Park. 

1683. The first grist-mill built near Germantown. First post-office estab- 

lished in Philadelphia. First school in Philadelphia, taught by 
Enoch Flower. 

1684. Pennsbury manor-house built for William Penn. First Baptist societies 

organized in Bucks County, near Bristol, and in Chester County. 

1685. Court-house at Chester erected. First printing-press in Philadelphia 

established hy William Bradford ; an almanac the first issue. 

1686. The first prison in Philadelphia built. First Baptist church in Penn- 

sylvania on Pennepack Creek, near site of Holmesburg. First 
meeting-house in Germantown, built by German Friends. 

1688. Friends' meeting-houses built in Darby and Haverford. 

1689. Germantown incorporated. Public school established in Philadelphia ; 

chartered by William Penn in 1701; still exists as the "William 
Penn Charter School." 
1692. First school established at Darby. 

1695. First Episcopal church erected in Philadelphia, on site of present 

Christ Church. Fulling-mill built in Darby. 

1696. The first paper-mill in Pennsylvania erected near Germantown. 

1700. Swedes' Church built on site of old block-house at Wicaco. John 

Penn, son of William Penn, born in the " Old Slate Roof House," 
Philadelphia. He was afterwards known fis " The American." 

1701. Philadelphia chartered as a city. 

1704. The first Presbyterian church in the province erected at Philadelphia; 
known as the "Old Buttonwood Church." 

1706. Tlie first Presbytery in America organized in Philadelphia. 

1707. The old court-house, Market Street, Philadclpliia, erected. 

17 13. The Friends' Almshouse founded at Philadelphia; buildings erected 
1713-29. 



THE UNITED STATES. 319 

1718. William Penn died at Ruscombe, England. Dunkers settled about 

Germantown and in Lancaster County. 

1719. The first newspaper outside Boston, the third in America, published 

in Philadelphia; named The Americmi Weekly Mercury. 

1720. The first iron furnaces erected in Pennsylvania. 

1721. The first insurance office opened in Philadelphia. 

1723. Benjamin Franklin arrived in Philadelphia. Paper money first issued 
in the province. 

1728. Bartram's Botanic Garden, near Gray's Ferry, begun. 

1729. The building of the State-House, Philadelphia, begun ; completed in 

1734. Publication of The Pennsylvania Gazette begun by Franklin ; 
the first successful newspaper. Second paper-mill built, in Concord 
Township, Delaware County. Catholic chapel built near Frankford, 
Philadelphia County. 

1730. Line of stages between Philadelphia and New York begun ; bi- 

monthly; weekly in 1733. 

1731. The first Baptist church erected in Philadelphia. Inoculation first 

practised in Pennsylvania. Public library started by Benjamin 
Franklin ; chartered as the Philadelphia Library in 1742. 

1732. "Poor Richard's Almanac" first issued by Franklin. "Colony in 

Schuylkill" club organized ; still exists as " State in Schuylkill." 

1733. The first negroes emancipated in Philadelphia. First German Re- 

formed church erected at Germantown. First Roman Catholic 
chapel in Philadelphia. 

1734. The first newspaper in the colonies in a foreign language (German) 

issued at Germantown. Small quantities of silk produced. First 
Masonic lodge in the province organized at Philadelphia, Benjamin 
Franklin master. 

1735. Benjamin Franklin appointed postmaster of Philadelphia. 

1738. Benjamin "West, the first native artist of America, born in Springfield, 

Delaware County. First fire company organized in Philadelphia 
by Franklin. 

1739. Moravian settlement begun at the Forks of the Delaware. 

1740. Lazaretto for sick immigrants established at Tinicum. First permanent 

settlement at Bethlehem. 

1741. The first literary journal in the colonies, TJie General Magazine and 

Historical Chi'onicle, established by Franklin at Philadelphia. 

1743. The American Philosophical Society founded in Philadelphia; incor- 
porated 1780; building erected 1785. A German edition of the 
Bible issued at Germantown. 

1745. The Franklin stoves invented by Benjamin Franklin. 



320 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

1746. The first iron rolling and slitting mill in Pennsylvania. 

1747. The first steel furnace erected in Philadelphia. 

1748. The first public lottery sanctioned by the assembly. The first German 

Lutheran Synod in the colonies organized in Philadelphia. 

1749. Academy established at G-ermantown. School for girls at Bethlehem. 

An academy and charitable school founded by Franklin at Phila- 
delphia; opened as a Latin school 1750; incorporated 1753; char- 
tered in 1755 as "The College, Academy, and Charitable School 
of Philadelphia;" became the University of Pennsylvania in 
1779. 

1750. In this year 5800 immigrants came to Pennsylvania; Philadelphia 

had more than 2000 houses; about 4500 in 1768; reached Boston 
in population about 1750; soon after was far ahead. 

175 1. The Pennsylvania Hospital founded at Philadelphia ; buildings erected 

1755 to 1804. Loganian Library founded. A German and English 
newspaper published in Lancaster. 

1752. Cannon stoves first used. Mutual assurance company founded. Frank- 

lin discovered that lightning is due to electricity. The State-House 
bell imported from P^ngland; recast in Philadelphia 1753. 

1753. Benjamin Franklin made deputy postmaster-general for ihe British 

colonies. The dail}- delivery of letters by carriers began in Phila- 
delphia. Two attempts were made to find the Northwest passage 
by a vessel sent from Philadelphia. 

1755. Free school started by subscription at Easton. 

1756. Line of stages and wagons established between Philadelphia and 

Baltimore. 

1757. First weekly post from Philadelphia to Carlisle. 
1759. First theatre built in Philadelphia. 

1762. First lectures on anatomy in Philadelphia, by Dr. William Shippen. 

1763. ]\Iason and Dixon began to run the boundary line between Pennsyl- 

vania and Maryland. 

1764. Grand Lodge of Masons organized in Philadelphia. Medical school 

founded, the oldest in the United States, now the medical depart- 
ment of the University of Pennsylvania. 
1766. Stage-coaches made the journey between Philadelphia and New York 
in two days ; were called " flying machines." 

1769. Methodism first introduced into Pennsylvania. Chemistry first taught 

in America, by Dr. Rush. 

1770. Carpenters' Hall, at Philadelphia, built; used by the First Continen- 

tal Congress in 1774. 

1771. The Medical Society of Philadelphia organized. 



THE UNITED STATES. 321 

1773. The first Methodist Conference in the United States held at Philadel- 

phia. The first steam-engine of American origin built in Philadel- 
phia. 

1774. The Friends abolished slavery among themselves. 

1775. Benjamin Franklin appointed by Congress postmaster-general. 

1776. First powder-mill in Pennsylvania erected near Chester. Law passed 

for establishing schools in every county. 

1777. State-House bell and Christ Church bells taken to places of safety to 

preserve them from the British. 

1780. The Humane Society of Philadelphia founded; incorporated 1793. 

1782. The first manufacture of fustians and jeans in America, at Philadel- 
phia. 

1784. The Philadelphia Museum founded, by Charles M. Peale. The first 

daily newspaper in the country issued at Philadelphia ; previously 
a weekly, — The I'eanHylvaida Packet, oi' the General Advertise): 

1785. Fitch began experiments in steam navigation on the Delaware. The 

Philadelphia Agricultural Society founded, the first in the United 
States. 

1786. A Philadelphia directory issued, the first in the United States. The 

first mail between Philadelphia and Pittsburg. The Pittsburg Gazette 
issued, the first newspaper west of the Alleghanies. The western 
boundary of the State settled. An act passed to appropriate sixty 
thousand acres of land in aid of pul)lic schools. 

1787. The College of Physicians at Philadelphia founded; chartered 1789. 

Bishop White, the first Episcopal bishop in Pennsylvania and the 
second in the United States, ordained in England. 

1789. First stage-coach line from Philadelphia to Keading. First Episcopal 

Convention in America held at Philadelphia. 

1790. Congress begins its sessions in Philadelphia. First manufacture of 

brooms from broom-corn. The Fitch steamboats make regular trips 
for four months between Philadelphia and Trenton. 

1791. First Sunday-school society in the United States founded in Philadel- 

phia. First newspaper in Harrisburg, The Oracle of Dauphin. 

1792. The first turnpike road in the United States, from Philadelphia to 

Lancaster, begun; length, sixty-two miles; completed 1794. 
United States Mint established at Philadelphia ; worked by horse- 
power until 1815. 

1793. Second inauguration of President Washington, in Independence Hall. 

1796. The first successful tj'pe-foundry in America established at Philadel- 
phia. First paper-mill west of the mountains built near Browns- 
ville. 



322 ^^' ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

1797. John Adams inaugurated President of the United States in Indepen- 

dence Hail. 

1798. The Schuyllvill Permanent Bridge at Philadelphia begun ; opened in 

1805 ; the first of the kind in America. 

1799. The State Legislature met at Lancaster; continued to meet there until 

1812. 

1800. Seat of the national government removed from Philadelphia to Wash- 

ington. 

1801. Philadelphia supplied with water from Centre Square; works operated 

by steam ; log pipes used. Chamber of Commerce founded. Ground 
for the United States Navy-Yard purchased. 

1802. Law Library of Philadelphia established. 

1803. Pennsylvania first called the Keystone State. 

1804. First stage between Chambersburg and Pittsburg. 

1805. The Academy of Fine Arts of Philadelphia founded ; incorporated 

1806. First dry-goods commission house in the country opened at 
Philadelphia. 

1806. First railroad in the United States built at Leiperville quarries, Dela- 

ware C<junty ; rails of wood ; worked by horses. 
1808. First newspaper, T/ie Mirr-or, published in Erie. Philadelphia Bible 
Society, the first in America, founded. 

1810. The Treaty Tree at Kensington blown down. The first steam ferry- 

boat to Camden, and steamboats from Philadelphia to Chester and 
Bordentown, began running. 

181 1. The first steamboat on Western waters launched at Pittsburg. 

1812. The first rolling-mill at Pittsburg built. Water-works begun at Fair- 

mount, Philadelphia; finished 1815. Academy of Natural Sciences 
founded ; incorporated 1816. 

1814. Philadelphia Orphan Society Asylum founded; incorporated 1816. 

1816-17. Wire suspension bridge, finst in the country, built over the Schuyl- 
kill at Philadelphia. 

1817. Bridge over the Su.squehanna at Harrisburg finished. 

1818. Bridge over the Monongahela built at Pittsburg. First steamboat 

launched on Lake Erie. First Jight-house on the great lakes built 
at Presque Isle. Lehigh Canal begun ; completed 1838. 

1819. United States Bank building at Philadelphia begun ; completed 1824. 

First bridge built over the Alleghany at Pittsburg. Apprentices' 
Library, Philadelphia, founded. Corner-stone of State Capitol at 
Harrisburg laid ; building completed 1821. 
1821. Deaf and Dumb Asylum founded in Philadelphia; building erected 
1825. Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, the first in the country, 
established. 



THE UNITED STATES. 323 

1822. State Legislature first met in the Capitol at Harrisburg. Mercantile 

Library of Philadelphia founded ; chartered 1842. Grand Lodge 
of Odd-Fellows organized at Philadelphia. 

1823. Eastern Penitentiary, Philadelphia, erected. The present dam and 

water-works at Fairmount completed. 

1824. Franklin Institute, Philadelphia, incorporated. The American Sun- 

day-School Union formed. 

1825. Schuylkill Navigation Canal completed; begun 1815. Historical 

Society of Pennsylvania founded at Philadelphia. Manufacture of 
queensware begun, the first in the country. 

1826. Manufacture of school slates begun in Pennsylvania, near the Dela- 

ware River. 

1827. The Jefferson Medical College founded at Philadelphia. Corner-stone 

of the first lock of the Pennsylvania Canal laid at Harrisburg. 
Pennsj^lvania Horticultural Society, the first in the United States, 
founded at Philadelphia. Mauch Chunk Railroad built ; second 
iron track in the country. House of Refuge, Philadelphia, incor- 
porated. "Western Penitentiary, Pittsburg, completed. 

1828. First periodical in the country devoted to women, The Ladies' Maga- 

zine, started at Philadelphia ; united with Godey's Ladies' Book in 
1837. First manufacture of paper from straw and hay, at Mead- 
ville. First run of a locomotive on an American railroad, on Car- 
bondale and Honesdale Railroad. 
1829-32. United States Mint building erected at Philadelphia; new Mint 
building begun 1897. First penny paper in the country, The Cent, 
issued, at Philadelphia ; soon discontinued. 

1831. Stephen Girard died, the richest man in the country, worth about ten 

million dollars. First locomotive built at Baldwin works. 

1832. The Philadelphia, Germantown and Norristown Railroad finished; 

the " Old Ironsides," the first effective locomotive in the State, used 
on it. Severe epidemic of cholera in Philadelphia. 

1833. The first National Temperance Convention held at Philadelphia. 

Corner-stone of Girard College laid; building opened January 1, 
1848. Institute for the Blind opened. 

1834. Common school system of Pennsylvania established. First homoeo- 

pathic medical school in the world opened at Allentown. Colum- 
bia lint of canal and railroad opened to Pittsburg; operated by 
horse-power until 1836. 

1835. Manufacture of mineral teeth begun in Philadelphia about this time. 

1836. Pennsylvania Hospital for the Insane built at Philadelphia; opened 

1841. Philadelphia first lighted with gas February 10. Gas-works 
at Pittsburi' built. 



324 ^^ ELEMENTARY HISTORY OF 

1840. Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal completed; begun 1827. The city of 

Scranton founded. 
184a. New wire suspension bridge over the Schuylkill finished. 

1846. The first telegraph lines in Pennsylvania built. 

1847. The zinc-mines of Lehigh County discovered. 

1849. State Lunatic Asylum built at Harrisburg. First women's medical 

college in the world established at Philadelphia. 

1850. Western House of Refuge chartered at Pittsburg. School of Design 

for Women established at Philadelphia ; first in the country. The 
first fiictory west of the Alleghanies for working copper and brass 
opened at Pittsburg ; first in the United States for working Amerin 
can copper. 

1852. Pennsylvania Training School for Feeble-Mindcd Children established 

at Germantown ; removed to Elwyn 1859. Manufacture of gal- 
vanized iron begun at Philadelphia ; first in the country. 

1853. Zinc-works at Bethlehem started ; first sheet zinc made there in 1865. 

1854. Normal School at Philadelphia founded. 

1855. Corner-stone of Masonic Temple laid in Philadelphia ; corner-stone of 

new Masonic Temple laid in 1868 ; building dedicated 1873. Lemon 
Hill dedicated to the city as Fairmount Park, the first addition to 
the garden adjoining Fairmount Hill ; Sedgeley purchased in 1856, 
Lansdowne in 1866, George's Hill donated in 1867, other purchases 
subsequently. 

1857. Normal School bill passed ; first State normal school opened at MiU 

Icrsvillc, 1859. Academy of Music of Philadelphia completed. 

1858. Introduction of the street railway .system of Philadelphia begun; 

change from horse to electric power begun in 1892. 

1859. State Agricultural College opened in Centre County. 

i860. The business in petroleum began ; the wildest speculation ever known 
in the United States. 

1871. The Paid Fire Department of Philadelphia established. The building 
of the City Hall begun ; the largest municipal building in America 
and the loftiest building in the world ; corner-stone laid July 4, 1874. 

1874. Great inundation at Pittsburg; about one hundred lives lost; im- 
mense destruction of property. 

1878. Cyclone at Philadelphia, October 23 ; more than four hundred builds 
ings unroofed ; more than one hundred injured and demol- 
ished. 

1880. Committee of One Hundred formed to promote honest politics ; dis-r 
banded 1886. 

1884. Philadelphia Post-Oflice opened. 



THE UNITED STATES. 325 

1887. The amended city charter, known as the Bullitt Bill, in operation in 

Philadelphia. 

1888. The great storm known as " The Blizzard" began March 11. 

1891. The Academy of Natural Sciences' expedition to North Greenland, 
under Lieutenant Peary, made important discoveries. Drexel Insti- 
tute of Art, Science, and Industry dedicated. 

1895. The Philadelphia Commercial Bourse opened. 

1897. The Commercial Section of the Philadelphia Museums opened; exer- 

cises attended by many foreign delegates. Strikers in the coal 
region fired on by sheriflPs deputies ; many killed and wounded. 

1898. The National Guard of Pennsylvania was called out by the national 

government to assist in the war with Spain. 



INDEX. 



Acadians expelled by the English, 108. 

Acadians, home of the, 107. 

Adams, John, elected President, 154. 

Adams, John, in the Continental Con- 
gress, 129. 

Adams, John Quincy, elected President, 
165. 

Agriculture in the South, 141. 

Alabama and Kearsarge, the, 212. 

Alabama claims, settlement of the, 221. 

Alaska purchased from Russia, 222. 

Allen, Ethan, captures Ticonderoga, 124. 

Amendments to the Constitution, 217, 
218. 

America discovered by Columbus, 16. 

America, how named, 18. 

America, native inhabitants of, 26. 

American commerce, interference with, 
155. 

American discontent, causes of, 115-120. 

Anderson, Major, at Fort Sumter, 199. 

Andr6, Major, capture and execution of, 
137. 

Andros, Sir Edmund, 52. 

Antietam, battle of, 204. 

Armies, disbanding of the, 234. 

Arnold, Benedict, attacks Quebec, 128. 

Arnold, Benedict, treason of, 137. 

Arthur, Chester A., becomes President, 
225. 

B. 

Bacon, Nathaniel, rebellion of, 43. 
Balboa discovers the Pacific, 22. 
Barbary States, war with the, 162. 
Benevolence, progress of, 246. 
Bennington, battle of, 134. 
Berkeley, Governor, revenge of, 44. 
Blaine, James G., death of, 231. 
Blockade runners, the, 205. 



Boone, Daniel, in Kentucky, 140, 

Boston, English besieged in, 125. 

Boston, evacuation of, 127. 

Boston fire, the, 221. 

Boston massacre, the, 120. 

Boston, oppression of, 122. 

Boston Port Bill, the, 121. 

Boston Tea-Party, the, 120. 

Braddock, General, character of, 105. 

Braddock, General, defeat of, 105, 106. 

Brandywine, battle of the, 133. 

Buchanan, James, elected President, 196. 

Buena Vista, battle of, 180. 

Bull Run, battle of, 200. 

Bull Run, second battle of, 204. 

Bunker Hill, battle of, 126, 127. 

Burgoyne, march of, 134. 

Burgoyne, surrender of, 135. 

c. 

Cabots, voyages of the, 18. 

California captured by Fremont, 182. 

California, value of, 183. 

Canada, discovery of, 20. 

Canonicus, story of, 47. 

Carolinas, the, colonization of, 78. 

Carolinas, the, division of, 80. 

Carolinas, the, life in, 84. 

Carolinas, the, settled by the French, 31. 

Carolinas, the, wars with Florida, 79. 

Cartier, Jacques, voyages of, 20. 

Census of 1890, the, 229. 

Centennial Exhibition, the, 222, 223. 

Champlain, Samuel de, story of, 34-36. 

Chancellorsville. battle of, 207. 

Charleston, bombardment of Fort Sumter 
at, 199. 

Charleston, capture of, in the Revolu- 
tionary war, 137. 

Charleston, earthquake at, 226. 

Charter Oak incident, the, 52. 



II 



INDEX. 



Charter troubles, the, 52. 

Chattanooga, battles around, 209, 210. 

Chicaj^o anarchists, the, 226. 

Chicago fire, the, 220. 

Cities of Revolutionary times, the, 144. 

City life, 159. 

Civil war, description of the, 200-213. 

Civil war, outbreak of the, 199. 

Clayborne's rebellion, 69. 

Cleveland, Grover, elected President, 225, 
2.31. 

Colonies, government and laws of, 92. 

Colonies, growth of, 90. 

Colonies, industries of, 90. 

Colonies, isolation of, 91. 

Colonies, the English, 90. 

Colonies, travel in, 92. 

Columbus, Christopher, story of, 12-18. 

Commerce, interference with American, 
155. 

Commerce of New England, 141. 

Concord, English expedition against, 123. 

Concord, stores at, 123. 

Concord, the retreat from, 124. 

Confederacy, the Southern, 198. 

Congress, state of, after the Revolution, 
150. 

Congress, the Constitutional, 151. 

Congress, the first Continental, 121. 

Congress, the second Continental, 127. 

Connecticut, Dutch in. 04. 

Connecticut, English in, 64. 

Constitution and Guerriere, conflict of 
the, 1.^9. 

Constitution of the United States, amend- 
ments to the, 217, 218. 

Constitution of the United States, char- 
acter of the, 151, 152. 

Constitution of the United States, forma- 
tion of the, 151. 

Constitutional Convention, the, 150. 

Continental Congress, the first, 121. 

Continental Congress, the second, 127. 

Copyright Bill, the, 230. 

("ornwallis, surrender of, 139. 

Cortez and Pizarro, doings of, 22. 

Cotton cultivation in the South, 1(59. 

Cotton-gin, invention of, 170. 

Customs of the Dutch, 66-68. 

Customs of the Georgians, 88. 

Customs of the Pennsylvanians, 74-76. 

Customs of the people of the United 
States, 167-169. 

Customs of the Puritans, 57-62. 

Customs of the Virginians and Caro- 
linians, 80-84. 



Davis, Jefferson, President of the Con. 

federacy, 202. 
Decatur, Lieutenant, exploits of, 155. 
Declaration of Independence, 129. 
Delaware, how named, 73. 
Delaware, Lord, comes to Virginia, 42. 
Delaware separated from Pennsylvania, 

73. 
Delaware settled by the Swedes, 64. 
Democratic party, the, 163, 165, 196. 
Denys, John, discovery by, 19. 
De Soto, expedition of, 23-25. 
Duke of York, the, 65. 
Dutch dress, 68. 
Dutch, houses of, 67. 
Dutch in New York, the, 63. 
Dutch industries, 68. 
Dutch settlement taken by the English, 

65. 
Dutch, Swedish settlement captured by, 

64. 



E. 

Education in the United States, 244-246. 
Education in Virginia, 84. 
Education, progress of, 1 90. 
Electric cable, laying of the, 234. 
Electricity, discoveries in, 235. 
Emancipation of the slaves, 206. 
Embargo Act, the, 150. 
Emigration along the Ohio, 167. 
Emigration westward, 185. 
England, difficulties with, 156. 
England, first exploration from, 18. 
England, military strength of, 157. 
England, oppressive edicts of, 92, 115- 

120. 
England, restrictive laws of, 92. 
English colonies, claims of the, 97. 
English colonies, the first, 33, 
English companies, the, 39. 
English prisons, the, 85. 
English soldiers sent to America, 120. 
Escape of Mrs. Dustin, 56. 



Farm life in America, 168. 

Farming industries, 141. 

Farragut, Admiral, first service of, 202. 



INDEX. 



Ill 



Farragut, Admiral, in Mobile Bay, 212. 

Fillmore, Millard, becomes President, 
195. 

Florida discovered, 21. 

Florida, war with, and purchase of, 163. 

Florida, wars of, with Carolina, 79. 

Florida, wars of, with Georgia, 87. 

Fort Du Quesne, building of, 103, 104. 

Fort Du Quesne, capture of, 106. 

Fort Du Quesne, expedition against, 105. 

Fort Moultrie, defence of, 128. 

Fort Necessity taken by the French, 104. 

Fort Necessit}', Washington builds, 104. 

Fort Sumter, bombardment of, 199. 

France, expedition from, 19. 

France, treatj' with, 135. 

Franklin, Benjamin, first Postmaster- 
General, 189. 

Franklin, Benjamin, in Congress, 129. 

Franklin, Benjamin, in the Constitutional 
Convention, 150. 

Franklin, Benjamin, sent to London, 119. 

Franklin, Benjamin, story of, 76, 77. 

Fredericksburg, battle of, 204. 

Free Soil party, the, 196. 

Fremont, General, takes California, 182. 

French and Indian war, 110. 

French and Indian war, end of, 112. 

French and Indian wars, first, 55-57. 

French claims to the Ohio country, 101. 

French colonies in America, 31, 34-36. 

French, enterprise of the, 98. 

French forts on the Mississippi, 100. 

French settlements in the AVest, 97. 

Fugitive slave law, the, 195. 

Fulton, Robert, steamboat invented by, 
171. 

Fur trade, the, 184. 



Garfield, James A., assassination of, 

225. 
Garfield, James A., elected President, 

224. 
Georgia, customs of the people, 88. 
Georgia, settlement of, 86. 
Georgia, war with Florida, 87. 
Germantown, battle of, 133. 
Gettysburg, battle of, 208. 
Gilbert, Sir Humphrey, voyage of, 33. 
Gold discovered in California, 182. 
Gold, results of discovery of, 183. 
Gold, specie payments resumed, 224. 



Good feeling, the era of, 162. 

Gourgues, Dominique de, revenge of, 32. 

Government and religion of Indians, 29. 

Government, " (irand Model," the, 78. 

Government of the Puritans, 48, 52. 

Government of the United States, 151, 
152. 

Government of Virginia, 82. 

Grant, General, advance of, on Richmond, 
210. 

Grant, General, at Vicksburg, 209. 

Grant, General, elected President, 220. 

Grant, General, first service of, 201. 

Grant, General, made commander-in- 
chief, 210. 

Greene, General, campaign of, 138. 

Growth of population, 166. 

Growth of the colonies, 90, 122. 

Growth of the country, 186. 



H. 



Habits of the people, 145. 
Harper's Ferry, the raid on, 197. 
Harrison, Benjamin, elected President, 

226. 
Harrison, General, defeats Tecumseh, 

156. 
Harrison, General, elected President, 

178. 
Harrison, General, victory of, on the 

Thames, 158. 
Hayes, Rutherford B., elected President, 

224. 
Hood, General, defeat of, at Nashville, 

212. 
Hudson, Henry, discoveries of, 37. 



Independence, Declaration of, 129. 
Independence, Declaration of, meaning 

of the, 131. 
Indian raids in Virginia, 106. 
Indian Territory, formation of the, 179. 
Indian wars in the West, 154, 156, 178, 

219. 
Indians, description of the, 25-30. 
Indians, disposal of the, 240. 
Indians, first battle with the, 35. 
Indians named by Columbus, 16. 
Indians of Georgia, treatment of, 89. 



IV 



INDEX. 



Indians of New England, the, 47. 
Indians of Virginia, the, 41. 
Indians, Quakers and the, 76. 
Indians, wars with the, 53-57, 112, 154, 

156, 178, 219. 
Industries of Georgia, 88. 
Industries of the Carolinas, 79. 
Industries of the colonies, 90. 
Industries of the Puritans, 61. 
Industry, restoration of, 161, 162. 
Internal improvements, 164. 
Invention, activity of Americans in, 188. 
Invention, progress of, 242. 
Iroquois, defeat of, by Champlain, 36. 
Iroquois, revenge of, 36. 



Jackson, General, against the United 

States Bank, 177. 
Jackson, General, at New Orleans, 159- 

161. 
Jackson, General, character of, 176. 
Jackson, General, elected President, 176. 
Jackson, General, in Florida, 163. 
Jackson, General, measures of, against 

South Carolina, 177. 
Jackson, Stonewall, death of, 207. 
Jackson, Stonewall, exploits of, 203. 
James River, colony on the, 40. 
Jefferson, Thomas, elected President, 154. 
Jefferson, Thomas, writes the Declaration 

of Independence, 129. 
John Brown raid, the, 197. 
Johnson, Andrew, becomes President, 

218. 
Johnson, Andrew, impeachment of, 218. 
Johnstown disaster, the, 227. 
Jones, Captain Paul, story of, 136. 



K. 

Kansas, the troubles in, 195, 196. 
King Philip, death of, 54. 
King Philip, war of, 54. 



L. 

Labrador, discovery of, 19. 
La Fayette, reception of, 172. 



La Fayette, visit of, to America, 172. 

Lake Champlain, battle of, 158. 

Lake Jlrie, battle of, 168. 

Lake George, battle of, 109. 

Landing of Columbus, the, 16. 

La Salle, story of, 99, 100. 

Laws, English colonial, 92. 

Laws, evasion of, 116, 117. 

Laws of Georgia, 88. 

Laws, restrictive English, 116. 

Lee, General, advance north of, 204. 

Lee, General, at Gettysburg, 208. 

Lee, General, defends Richmond, 21 0, 
211. 

Lee, General, in the Wilderness, 207. 

Lee, General, made Confederate com- 
mander, 203. 

Lee, General, surrender of, 213. 

Lee, Richard Henry, motion for liberty 
of the colonies made by, 129. 

Lcisler's revolt, 65. 

Lewis and Clark, expedition of, 183. 

Lexington, battle of, 123. 

Lincoln, Abraham, assassination of, 213. 

Lincoln, Abraham, elected President, 
197. 

Lincoln, Abraham, the slaves emanci- 
pated by, 206. 

Locke, John, plan of government of, 78. 

Lookout Mountain, battle of, 210. 

Lord Baltimore, 69. 

Louisburg, capture of, 107. 

Louisiana named by La Salle, 99. 

Louisiana, purchase of, 154. 



M. 

McCIellan, General, besieges Richmond, 

203. 
Machinery, invention of, 242. 
Madison, James, elected President, 157. 
Magellan sails round the globe, 22. 
Manhattan Island bought by the Dutch, 

63, 
Manufactures in America, 116, 142. 
Manufactures, progress of, 241. 
Marco Polo, travels of, 12. 
Mariner's compass, discovery of the, 12. 
Marion, General, 138. 
Marquette discovers the Mississippi, 98. 
Maryland, settlement of, 69, 70. 
Massachusetts Bay settlement, 47. 
Massacre at Fort William Henry, 109. 
Massacre of the French colonists, 32. 



INDEX. 



Massacre of Wyoming, 136. 

Massacres in New England, Indian, 56. 

Massacres in Virginia, Indian, 43. 

Menendez, massacre by, 32. 

Mexican war, the, 180-182. 

Mines, value of, 187. 

Minute-men, the, 121. 

Mississippi River discovered by De Soto, 
24. 

Mississippi River discovered by Mar- 
quette, 98. 

Mississippi River explored by La Salle, 
99. 

Mississippi River, opening of the, 202. 

Missouri Compromise, the, 164, 195. 

Monitor and Merrimac, the, 205, 206. 

Monroe, James, elected President, 163. 

Montcalm, Marquis de, death of, 112. 

Montcalm, Marquis de, in command at 
Quebec, 110. 

Mormons, the, 186. 

Morse's telegraph, 188. 

Mound-builders, the, 26. 

Murfreesborough, battle of, 201. 



N. 



Narragansetts, defeat of the, 54. 

Narvaez, adventures of, 22. 

Nashville, Hood's defeat at, 212. 

Negro plot in New York, 66. 

Negroes first brought to America, 42. 

New England, settlement of, 45-49. 

New England, the people of, in arms, 124. 

New England, warlike feeling in, 122. 

New Jersey, settlement of, 74. 

New Mexico, capture of, 181. 

New Orleans, battle of, 159-161. 

New Orleans, founding of, 100. 

New Orleans, surrender of, 202. 

New York captured by the English, 65. 

New York captured in Revolutionary 

war, 131. 
New York, discovery of, 37. 
New York, Dutch settlement of, 63. 
New York, modes of life in, 66-68. 
Newspapers and books, increase of, 191. 



Oglethorpe, character of, 85. 
Oglethorpe, colony of, in Georgia, 



Oglethorpe, later life of, 87, 88. 

Ohio Company, the, 101. 

Ohio River, claims to the valley of the, 

101. 
Oregon, acquirement of, 184. 



Pan-American Congress, the, 227. 

Panic of 1837, 177. 

Panic of 1873, 221. 

Panic, the first business, 173. 

Parties in the United States, 165. 

Parties, new political, 196. 

Patrick Henry opposes English taxation, 

118. 
Patroons, the Dutch, 68. 
Penn, William, story of, 71-73. 
Penn, AVilliam, treaty with the Indians 

made by, 72. 
Pennsylvania, modes of life in, 74—76. 
Pennsylvania, settlement of, 71-73. 
Pension list, the, 230. 
People, modes of life of American, 167- 

169. 
People, prosperity of, 172. 
Pequot war, the, 63. 
Perry, Captain, victory of, on Lake Erie, 

158. 
Philadelphia captured by the British 

army, 133. 
Philadelphia, description of, 74, 75. 
Philadelphia, founding of, 72. 
Philadelphia, retreat of British from, 

135. 
Pierce, Franklin, elected President, 195. 
Pilgrims, later story of the, 47. 
Pilgrims, sufferings of the, 46. 
Pilgrims, voyage and landing of the, 46. 
Pioneers of the North, 166. 
Pioneers of the South, 140. 
Pirates of Carolinas, the, 79. 
Pittsburg Landing, battle of, 201. 
Plantations, life on the, 81. 
Plymouth Company, colony of the, 40. 
Pocahontas, the story of, 41. 
Political parties, 165, 196. 
Polk, James K.. elected President, 180. 
Ponce de Leon's expedition to Florida, 21. 
Pontiac, Indian war of, 112. 
Population, growth of, 166. 
Population, increase of, 185, 239. 
Population of the colonies, 140. 
Postal service, the, 189. 
Presidential election of 1892, 230- 



VI 



INDEX. 



Prisons, improvement in, 190. 
Progress of the South, 242. 
Proprietors, the, 78. 
Punishments in New England, 59. 
Punishments in Virginia, 83. 
Puritan colony, the, 47-49. 
Puritans, dress of the, 58. 
Puritans, food of the. 59. 
Puritans, houses of the, 57. 
Puritans, industries of the, 61. 
Puritans, laws of the, 59. 
Puritans, military customs of the, 61. 
Puritans, modes of travelling of the, 62. 
Puritans, religious customs of the, 60. 
Puritans, titles of the, 58. 



Q. 

Quadricentenniai, the American, 2?>\. 
Quakers, dealings of the, with the Indians, 

76. 
Quakers, description of the, 71. 
Quakers in New Jersey, 74. 
Quakers in Pennsylvania, 73. 
Quakers, persecution of the, 50. 
Quebec, attack on and repulse, 128. 
Quebec, capture of, by Wolfe, 110. 
Quebec, founding of, 34. 



Railroad, introduction of the, 171. 
Railroads in the United States, 236-239. 
Railroads, usefulness of the, 239. 
Raleigh, Sir Walter, colonies of, 33. 
Recijjrocity in trade, 228. 
Reconstruction of the Union, 218. 
Religious customs of the Puritans, 60. 
Religious liberty in Maryland, 69. 
Religious liberty in Pennsylvania, 73. 
Religious liberty in Rhode Island, 49. 
Religious persecution in the colonies, 70, 

83. 
Religious persecution of the Puritans, 

49-51. 
Republican party, the, 163, 165, 196. 
Revere, Paul, ride of, 123. 
Revolution, distress after the, 149. 
Rhode Island, settlement of, 49. 
Ribault's colony, 31. 
Rice introduced into America, 79. 
Richmond besieged by McClellan, 203. 
Richmond, Grant's advance on, 210. 



Richmond, Lee's retreat from, 212. 
Richmond the Confederate capital, 202. 



St. Augustine, founding of, 31. 

Salem witchcraft, the, 51. 

Scott, General, campaign of, in Mexico, 

181. 
Scott, General, victories of, in Canada, 

158. 
Seal fisheries of Alaska, 230. 
Secession of the Southern States, 198, 199. 
Serapis, capture of the, by the Bon Homme 

Richard, 136. 
Sergeant Jasper, daring of, 128. 
Settlements in the interior, 140. 
Seven days' fight, the, 203. 
Shays's rebellion, 14i). 
Sheridan's ride, 211. 
Sherman, General, advances north, 212. 
Sherman, General, attacks Vicksburg, 209. 
Sherman, General, in command of Western 

army, 210. 
Sherman, General, marches through 

Georgia, 21 1. 
Signal service, the, 235. 
Silver Bill, the Sherman, 228. 
Slavery, abolishment of, 217. 
Slavery, difiiculties about, 164. 
Slavery, disputes about, 195. 
Slavery in the colonies, 91. 
Slavery, the question of, 194. 
Slaves, emancipation of the, 206. 
Smith, Captain John, story of, 40-42. 
South, progress of the, 242. 
South Carolina invaded by Sherman, 212. 
South Carolina, secession of, 198. 
South Carolina tarifi" troubles, their settle- 
ment, 177. 
South Carolina, tariff troubles with, 176. 
South Carolina, the war in, 137. 
Spain, Columbus aided by, 13. 
Spain, reception of Columbus in, 17. 
Stamp Act, opposition to and repeal of, 

118. 
Stamp Act, the, 117. 
Standish, Captain Miles, 46, 47. 
Stark, General, at Bennington, 134. 
State Rights doctrine, the, 198. 
States, formation of new, 154, 163, 229. 
States of the Union, 145. 
Steamboat, invention of the, 171. 
Steamship, the first ocean, 171. 



INDEX. 



vn 



Swedes, capture of, by the Dutch, 64. 
Swedes, settlement of, on Delaware River, 
64. 



T. 

Tariff question, the, 164. 

Tariff, the McKinley, 228. 

Tax on tea, the, 120. 

Taxation, the dispute about, 117. 

Taylor, General, advance of, into Mexico, 

180. 
Taylor, General, elected President, 180, 

195. 
Taylor, General, victory of, at Buena 

Vista, 180. 
Tea, refusal to receive, 121. 
Tea, the tax on, 120. 
Telegraph, length of, in the United States, 

235. 
Telegraph, the electric, 188. 
Temperance reform, the, 190. 
Territory, acquisition of, from Mexico, 

182. 
Territory, increase of, 183. 
Territory, value of, 182. 
Texas a State of the Union, 179. 
Texas claimed by Mexico, 180. 
Texas, La Salle's colony in, 100. 
Texas, rebellion and independence of, 179. 
Texas, war caused by, 180. 
Thames, battle of the, 158. 
Thomas, General, victory of, at Nashville, 

212. 
Ticonderoga, capture of, 124. 
Ticonderoga, English repulse at, 109. 
Tobacco, culture of, in Virginia, 42. 
Tobacco introduced into Europe, 33. 
Tobacco used as money, 80. 
Travel, difficulties of, 143. 
Travel in the colonies, 91. 
Treaty of peace with England, 139, 161. 
Tripoli, war with, 155. 
Tyler, John, becomes President, 178. 
Tyranny in Europe, 85. 
Tyranny, ten years of, 122. 



u. 

United States Bank, the, 177. 
United States, cities of, 144. 
United States, commerce of, 142. 
United States, extent of, 145, 
t 



United States, farming population, of, 

142. 
United States, manufactures of, 143. 
United States, origin of people of, 141. 
United States, population of, 140. 
United States, States of, 145, 146. 
United States, travel in, 143. 



V. 

Valley Forge, suffering of the army at. 

Van Buren, Martin, elected President, 

178. 
Vera Cruz, capture of, 181. 
Verrazano, voyage of, 19. 
Vicksburg, passing the forts at, 202. 
Vicksburg, siege and surrender of, 209. 
Virginia claims the Ohio country, 102. 
Virginia, settlement of, 40. 
Virginia, the war in, 202-206. 
Virginians, modes of life of the, 80. 
Voyage of Columbus, 14-16. 



w. 

War, civil, 199-213. 

War, civil, results of the, 216. 

War, French and Indian, 110-112. 

War, Revolutionary, 123-139. 

War with England, seat and character of 

the second, 157. 
War with Mexico, 179-182. 
Wars with the Indians, 53-57, 112, 154, 

156, 178, 219. 
Washington, George, captures Fort Du 

Quesne, 106. 
Washington, George, commander-in-chief, 

127. 
Washington, George, crosses the Dela- 
ware, 132. 
Washington, George, early life of, 102. 
Washington, George, elected President, 

162. 
Washington, George, journey of, to the 

Ohio, 103. 
Washington, George, patriotism of, 150. 
Washington, George, retreat of, from New 

York, 132. 
Washington, George, service of, against 

the Indians in Virginia, 106. 
Wa-'^hington, George, service of, with 

Braddock, 106. 



VIU 



INDEX. 



Washington, George, victory of, at Tren- 
ton, 133. 

Washington, the burning of, 159. 

Wayne, General, capture of Stony Point 
by, 136. 

Wayne, General, defeats the Western 
Indians, 154. 

Wealth, increase of, 187, 240. 

West, settlements in the, 140, 154, 167. 

West, the war in the, 201, 202. 

Whig party, the, 165. 

Whitman, Dr., Oregon gained by, 184. 

Whitney, Eli, invention of the cotton-gin 
by, 170. 



Wilderness, battle of the, 210. 
Williams, Roger, story of, 49. 
Witchcraft, the Salem, 51. 
Wolfe, General, capture of Quebec by, 111 
Wolfe, General, death of, 112. 
World's Fair, the Columbian, 231. 
Wyoming, massacre of, 136. 



Yellow fever in the South, 224. 
Yorktown, the surrender ai,, 139. 



THE END. 



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